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Living Machines in Action: Exercise that is Healthful and Useful 






PERSONAL HYGIENE 


REVISED 


BY 


FRANK OVERTON, M.D., Dr.P.H, Sc.D. 

AUTHOR OF “APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY” 

SANITARY SUPERVISOR 
NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 



AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 

NEW Y<pRK CINCINNATI CHICAGO 

BOSTON ATLANTA 





Copyright, 1913, by 
FRANK OVERTON. 
Copyright, 1923, by 
AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY. 
Copyright, 1913, in Great Britain. 

OVERTON, PERSONAL HYGIENE, REVISED. 
E. P. I 


APR 28 1923 


MADE IN U.S.A. 


© 


Cl A 7 0 4 36 9 




PREFACE 


Health education in public schools has been stand¬ 
ardized during the past ten years.- Modern syllabi 
in hygiene emphasize the practice of healthful living 
by the pupils, and dwell on those topics which can be 
put to daily use in daily life. This book conforms to 
the standard syllabi in recognizing three groups of 
topics, which require three different methods of in¬ 
struction, and which may be briefly designated as those 
of scientific information, health habits, and civic con¬ 
ditions. 

The topics of the first group are items of scientific 
information, and are designed to be imparted by the 
method of classroom instruction. They cover all the 
basic actions of the body and include demonstrations 
and practical applications of the principles in useful 
ways, such as stopping bleeding and cleansing the nose. 
This scientific information is at the basis of all hygienic 
instruction, and will enable a pupil to read hygienic 
literature intelligently later in life. 

The topics of the second group are health habits and 
health chores which are practiced daily by the pupils, 
such as posture, exercise, personal cleanliness, and 
5 


6 


PREFACE 


habits of personal thought and speech. While these 
jtopics are based on scientific facts which may be briefly 
stated, yet their practice is secured principally by re¬ 
iterated advice and constant supervision by the teacher 
as occasion arises. 

The topics of the third group are conditions of a 
civic nature which the pupils observe. They include 
such subjects as heating, ventilation, lighting, and 
cleanliness of the schoolroom, and the prevention of 
infectious diseases among the pupils. The teacher 
imparts information in these topics largely by calling 
the pupils’ attention to actual conditions, and by show¬ 
ing which ones are to be commended and which con¬ 
demned. References to points to be observed are 
made in the text of this book and in suggestions to the 
teacher at the end of each chapter. 

The book embodies the experience of the author as a 
physician and health official constantly in intimate 
contact with people of all classes, and especially con¬ 
cerned with the subjects in which they need instruc¬ 
tion in order to prevent diseases, correct defects, and 
live efficiently. A simple, direct style of English, and 
the use of short, common words, make the book readily 
understandable by pupils of the third, fourth, and 
fifth grades, for whom it is designed. 


CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I 



PAGE 

The Study of Hygiene. 

CHAPTER II 



9 

Disease Germs 

CHAPTER III 



• 14 

Bathing . 

CHAPTER IV 



• 23 

Cleaning House 

CHAPTER V 



• 34 

Clothes . 

CHAPTER VI 



• 39 

The Feet 

CHAPTER VII 



. 46 

The Nose and the 

Mouth .... 

CHAPTER VIII 



• 53 

The Teeth 

CHAPTER IX 




Organs and Cells 

CHAPTER X 



. 70 

Digestion 

CHAPTER XI 



. 78 

Food 

CHAPTER XII 



. 89 

Care of Food . 

7 

* 

• 

. TOO 









8 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER XIII page 

Drinks . . J o 9 

CHAPTER XIV 

Pure Water.116 

CHAPTER XV 

Stimulants and Narcotics.125 

CHAPTER XVI 

Blood.136 

CHAPTER XVII 

Wounds. 145 

CHAPTER XVIII 

First Aid.154 

CHAPTER XIX 

Safety First.160 

CHAPTER XX 

Breathing.169 

CHAPTER XXI 

Fresh Air.182 

CHAPTER XXII 

Body Heat.189 

CHAPTER XXIII 

Colds ........... 196 

CHAPTER XXIV 

Some Common Fevers.205 

CHAPTER XXV 

Exercise.218 

CHAPTER XXVI 

The Brain and Nerves.229 

CHAPTER XXVII 

Seeing and Hearing.237 

GLOSSARY. 247 

INDEX. 2 « 













PERSONAL HYGIENE 



Leapfrog 

Happy play promotes health and strength. 

CHAPTER I 

THE STUDY OF HYGIENE 

Good Health. — Sometimes you are bright and 
cheerful, and are ready for work or play. You feel 
comfortable and at ease in every part of your body. 
You do not readily become tired, and you enjoy your 
tasks as if they were play. When you feel and act like 
this, we say that you are in good healthy or are well. 


9 








IO 


THE STUDY OF HYGIENE 


Sometimes you are dull and gloomy, and do not 
feel like stirring. You have pains and aches, and can¬ 
not help thinking about your uncomfortable feelings. 
You are too tired to work. Playing is a hard task, 
and even a rest does not help you. When you feel like 
this, we say that you are in poor health , or are sick. 

You can keep yourself in good health without great 
cost or trouble. Your body is a living machine which 
will work perfectly if you take good care of it. When 
you do not feel well and cannot work or play, the reason 
usually is that you have not given your body proper 
care. 

A Strong Mind. — You are something more than 
a living machine. You have a mind as well as a body. 
Some persons with strong and healthy bodies fail in 
their work because they do not have good minds; but 
many persons with fine minds cannot work because 
their bodies are weak and sickly. Anything that harms 
your body is likely to harm your mind also. For ex¬ 
ample, after you have eaten too much dinner, you will 
feel too dull and stupid to study; a headache or a . 
toothache will keep you from thinking about anything 
except your pain; and when you have a bad cold or a 
fever, you may feel too sick to think at all. You go 
to school in order to train your mind, but you cannot 
have a strong and bright mind unless you learn to care. 
for your body also. 

Health and Good Looks. — It is well for you to be 
as good-looking as possible, in order that your appear- 


THE STUDY OF HYGIENE 


n 



ance may please other persons. A shapely face, blue 
eyes, wavy hair, and round cheeks will not give you 
pleasing looks if you are not in good health. Pleasing 
looks come from a fair skin, rosy cheeks, a pleasant 


Apple Blossoms and the Bloom of Health 
The children are as healthy as they look. 

smile, sparkling eyes, and a happy face, and these come 
from good health. If you have a headache, a scowl or 
a pout will take the place of a smile. If your body is 
weak, you will easily become tired and you will look 
dull and sleepy. You cannot have pleasing looks 
unless you feel well. 



12 


THE STUDY OF HYGIENE 


Sickness. — After you have worked or played hard, 
you may have tired feelings which seem like the feel¬ 
ings of sickness; but if your body is sound, a short 
rest will put it in order again. Sickness means a dis¬ 
order which a rest of a few hours will not repair. 

Nearly every man, woman, and child is sick for 
several days in each year. But there is less sickness 
now than there used to be, and there will be still less 
sickness in years to come, for people are learning more 
and more about the care of their bodies. A doctor 
has to study for many years before he can cure diseases, 
but a school child can easily learn how the common 
diseases are caused, and how they may be pre¬ 
vented. 

Hygiene. — The study of caring for the body is 
called hygiene (hl'ji-en). When you study hygiene, 
you learn about such things as how to keep your body 
clean, what to eat and drink, how to care for a wound, 
how to take exercise, and how to keep the air of a 
room fresh and pure. 

In order to understand the care of your body, you * 
must study about what goes on inside of it. This 
study is called physiology. In it you will study 
about such things as how food is digested, how blood 
flows through the body, and how breathing takes 
place. If you wish to have a bright mind, a sound 
body, and good looks, or if you wish to have strength to 
do great deeds, you will study hygiene and physiology, 
and will practice the lessons which you learn. 


THE STUDY OF HYGIENE 


13 


QUESTIONS 

What is meant by good health f 

In what way may an unhealthy body prevent the mind from doing 
good work? 

In what way will a healthy body help your good looks ? 

What is sickness ? 

What is the study of the care of the body called? 

What are some of the subjects which are studied in hygiene? 

What is physiology ? 

What are some of the subjects which are studied in physiology? 

For the Teacher. — Why should any one try to be well and strong? Three 
answers are usually given: 

1. In order to look well. 

2. In order to be physically strong. 

3. In order to be cheerful, mentally active, and able to work efficiently. 

Vigor and strength of both mind and body depend on the care of the ma¬ 
chinery of the body. How many pupils in the class have been absent during 
the past week because they were sick or over-tired ? In how many instances was 
the absence the result of sitting up too late? of wrong eating? In how 
many instances could the sickness have been easily prevented ? 

Impress the pupils with their personal responsibility for their own strength 
and vigor. 


CHAPTER II 


DISEASE GERMS 

Causes of Disease. — Diseases are divided into two 

classes: 

1. Those which can be caught from other persons. 

2. Those which cannot be caught from other persons. 

Some diseases spread from one person to another, 

like a fire. They are caused by something which 
passes from those who are sick to those who are well. 
Measles is an example of a disease which spreads from 
one person to another. If any one has measles, it is 
because he has caught the disease from some one 
who had (or has) measles. Over half of the people 
who are sick have caught their diseases from other sick 
persons. 

Infectious Diseases. — Those diseases which are 
caught from other persons are called infectious dis¬ 
eases, and some of them are commonly known as con- 
ta'gious diseases. All of them are called commu'nicable 
diseases, because they can be communicated, or spread, 
from one person to another. They are caused by tiny 
living things, called disease germs , which grow in the 
body. Examples of infectious diseases are : 

chicken pox diphtheria (dif-the'ri-a) 

colds German measles 


14 


DISEASE GERMS 


15 


in'fantile paral'ysis 

measles 

mumps 


smallpox 

tonsillitis (ton-si-ll tis) 
tuberculo'sis 


pneumonia (nu-mo'-ni-a) ty'phoid fever 


scarlet fever 


whooping cough 


Each disease is caused by its own kind of germ, just 
as each kind of tree comes from its own kind of seed. 
Tuberculosis, for example, is always caused by the 
germs of tuberculosis, and measles by the germs of 
measles, just as pine trees come from the seeds of other 
pine trees. There are as many kinds of disease germs 
as there are infectious diseases. 

Infectious diseases spread because some of their 
living germs leave the bodies of the sick and become 
planted in the bodies of other persons. You will not 
have an infectious disease unless you take its living 
germs into your body. One of the principal things 
that you will study in hygiene is how to keep germs 
of sickness out of your body. It is therefore important 
for you to learn what disease germs are, where they are 
found, how they are spread, and how to keep them out 
of your body. 

Disease and Decay. — An infectious disease in a 
living body is caused in the same way that decay is 
caused in a dead thing. A living thing remains sound 
while it is alive, but after it dies, it undergoes a change 
called decay . A decaying thing becomes soft and falls 
to pieces, or becomes a liquid. Most forms of decay 


i6 


DISEASE GERMS 


are caused by two kinds of living things, called molds 
and bacte'ria. 

Molds. — Molds are plants which are shaped like 
the smallest and finest threads or fibers of cotton or 
silk. Mold on bread or cheese looks like short hair, 
or fur, but the part that is seen on the outside of the 
food is only the fruit of mold plants. Many more of 
the same kind of threads grow through the food itself 
and cause it to become decayed and spoiled. 

The tips of many mold hairs bear knobs which are 
filled with tiny balls called spores. You can sometimes 
see the spores floating away as dust when you strike 
a spot of mold. They are like seeds, and when they 

fall on other pieces of 
bread or cheese, they 
may grow into long 
threads of mold. Many 
millions of spores are 
formed in each spot of 
mold, and so the spores 
are scattered nearly 
everywhere. 

Bact e r i a. — The 
common forms of decay 
in which bad odors are produced are caused by tiny plants 
called bacteria , which are the smallest living things that 
are known. Millions of them could swim in a small 
drop of water without crowding one another. Power¬ 
ful microscopes are needed in order to see them at all, 





DISEASE GERMS 


17 


and even then, most bacteria look like small dots and 
dashes on the page of a printed book. When millions 
of them grow to¬ 
gether in a dish, 
they may look like 
a spot of mold. 

When a decayed 
substance becomes 
dried, the bacteria 
which may be in it 
may remain alive 
and float in the air 
as dust, and may grow again in a substance upon 
which they fall. The bacteria of decay, like the 
spores of mold, are scattered almost everywhere, and 
are ready to grow in every dead substance which was 
once alive; and so it is difficult to keep meat, eggs, 
and other food from decaying. 

How Decay Starts. — Decay is catching, just as 

measles is catching. 
A substance decays 
because mold spores 
or bacteria from 
some other decay¬ 
ing thing reach it 
and grow. A de¬ 
caying apple will 
cause other apples 

Photograph of two kinds of bacteria growing in , 

decaying meat. (Magnified 1000 times.) to become decayed. 




Mold Stalks and Spore Cases 

Photograph of the velvety growth of black mold 
on bread. (Magnified 10 times.) 


OV. PERS. HYG. — 2 






i8 


DISEASE GERMS 


Food that is canned does not decay or spoil because 
the molds and bacteria in it have been killed by heat 
and the cans are sealed so that no new spores or 
bacteria can enter them. 

Disease Germs.—Thousands of kinds of molds and 
bacteria can grow in dead things and cause them to 
decay. A few kinds can grow in a living body, and these 
are the disease germs which cause most infectious dis¬ 
eases, such as diphtheria and typhoid fever. Diseases 
spread because some of their germs leave the bodies 
of sick persons and enter the bodies of well persons. 
Catching a disease means taking germs of that disease 
into the body. Most disease germs are bacteria. 

How Disease Germs Leave the Body. — The in¬ 
fectious diseases of human beings are spread by means 
of disease germs which leave the bodies of sick persons. 
Very few disease germs pass out of the body of a sick 
person through the skin or with the breath of quiet 
breathing. They leave the body with the solids and 
liquids which pass out of the bowel and bladder, and 
from the nose and mouth of the sick person. If every 
sick person would guard these four gateways to the in¬ 
side of the body, and would destroy the substances 
which escape through them, there would soon be no 
more infectious diseases, such as typhoid fever, measles, 
scarlet fever, diphtheria, and tuberculosis. The sub¬ 
stances that are blown from the nose and spit from the 
mouth may contain disease germs which are as dan¬ 
gerous as those which come from the bowel and bladder. 


DISEASE GERMS 


19 


Dirt and Disease Germs. — If a person has an in¬ 
fectious disease, everything which he soils will be likely 
to contain disease germs. Dirt from his body, from 
his clothes, and from his room will often be danger¬ 
ous on account of the disease germs which it may con¬ 
tain. Those who are mildly sick give off living germs 
of their diseases, and so dirt from any person may be 
dangerous. One of the greatest reasons for keeping 
yourself clean is to avoid either taking or spreading 
disease germs. 

There are two kinds of dirt: 

1. That which contains disease germs. 

2. That which does not contain disease germs. 

The kind of dirt which contains disease germs and 
is likely to make you sick is that which comes from 
persons. Examples of dirty things which contain 
disease germs are: 

1. Waste water and slops from houses. 

2. Soiled towels, handkerchiefs, and underclothes. 

3. The dishes from which persons have eaten. 

4. Waste substances from bathrooms and toilets. 

Examples of dirt which is not likely to contain dis¬ 
ease germs or to produce a disease, are: 

1. Fresh ashes from a fire. 

2. Grease from an automobile. 

3. Coal dust. 

4. Dust from a haymow. 


20 


DISEASE GERMS 


Disease germs seldom grow outside of a living body, 
but nearly always are produced in the bodies of 
persons. They may remain alive for a time outside 
of the body, and may be found in substances which 
have come from the body, but they will not be found 
in dirt or decaying substances unless they are put there 
after they have grown in the body. If a garbage heap, or 
dirty water, or impure food causes an infectious disease, 
the physicians from the Health Department will look 
for the sick person from whom the disease germs came. 

How Disease Germs Enter the Body. — The most 
common way by which you catch a disease is by taking 
another person’s waste substances into your mouth 
or nose. A very small quantity of waste substance 
from the body of a sick person may start a disease, for 
disease germs are like seeds, and a few in your body 
may grow to millions in a short time. Some of the 
common ways of spreading a disease to others are: 

1. Sneezing or coughing into the face of another 
person. 

2. Drinking water containing sewage, even in small 
amounts. 

3. Eating food which has been handled by some one 
with dirty hands. 

4. Using a handkerchief, or towel, or dish which has 
been soiled by another person. 

Protection against Infectious Diseases. — You will 
learn about protecting yourself and others from dis- 


DISEASE GERMS 


21 


ease germs in almost every chapter of hygiene which 
you study. 

The rules of good manners and good housekeeping 
are also among the best rules of health. If you follow 
them, you will think of the comfort and health of other 
persons as well as of your own. You will keep all 
parts of your body, and your clothes, and your rooms 
clean; you will see that waste matters from your nose 
and mouth do not reach other persons; you will al¬ 
ways wash your hands after going to the toilet; and 
you will keep away from other persons when you have 
a cold, or measles, or other infectious disease. 

QUESTIONS 

What is the cause of diseases which spread from sick persons to 
those who are well? 

What is meant by an infectious disease? 

What is the cause of infectious diseases? 

What are molds ? 

What is the shape of a mold plant? 

How do molds spread from place to place? 

What are bacteriaf 

What have bacteria to do with decay? 

What are disease germs ? 

Where do disease germs grow ? 

What are the four principal gateways through which disease germs 
leave the body of a sick person ? 

Where are disease germs likely to be found outside of the body? 

Name some kinds of dirt which may contain disease germs. 

How does cleanliness help to prevent diseases ? 

How do disease germs find their way into the bodies of well persons? 

How may the rules of good manners help to prevent the spread 
of infectious diseases? 


22 


DISEASE GERMS 


For the Teacher. — Modern discoveries have shown the nature of a cold, 
sore throat, and other infectious diseases, and how they are spread. An 
infectious disease is the result of something which is put into the body and 
planted like a seed. The two conditions which are necessary to produce a 
disease are: 

1. Living disease germs, or seeds. 

2. A proper soil in which the disease germs may grow. 

Drafts, coldness, dampness, fatigue, and other conditions which were 
formerly supposed to cause infectious diseases, act by preparing the body to 
receive disease germs, but no sickness will result from them unless disease 
germs are planted in the body. This chapter deals with the germs, or seeds, 
of disease. The following points are to be emphasized: 

1. The nature of disease germs and the similarity of disease to the process 
of decay. 

2. The human origin of the germs of human disease. 

3. How disease germs leave the body. 

4. How the germs enter the bodies of well persons. 

5. The kinds of dirt in which disease germs are likely to be found. 

6. The value of good manners and good housekeeping in preventing the 
spread of disease. 


CHAPTER III 


BATHING 


Cleanliness and Good Health. — The principal way 
by which disease germs may be kept from the body 
is cleanliness. Many persons seem to think that 
the only reason for keeping clean is for the sake of 
good looks. A greater 
reason for keeping clean 
is to be well and healthy. 

You will not take many 
disease germs into your 
body if you eat clean 
food, breathe clean air, 
drink clean water, and 
keep everything about 
your body clean. 

The Skin. — The 
whole body is covered 
with a skin which is 
soft and strong. The 
thickness of the skin 
may be seen by grasp¬ 
ing a fold of flesh on 
the back of the hand. 



Diagram of the Skin 

(Magnified ioo times.) a, layer of dead 
epidermis; b, layer of growing epidermis; 
c, layer of epidermis with coloring matter 
which gives color to the skin; d, a ridge of 
true skin; e, a sweat gland extending down 
into the true skin; /, a small blood tube; 
g, fibers of the true skin; h, pockets of fat. 


2 3 




24 


BATHING 


Nearly all of the flesh which can be lifted up is 
skin. 

The skin is made of tough threads of flesh. Leather 
is an animal’s skin that has been preserved by tanning, 
and its fibers and threads are like those in a person’s 
skin. 

The skin is full of blood tubes. The blood in the 
tubes makes the skin look pink. When any one is 
faint, the skin is pale and almost white, for then there 
is only a little blood in it. 

Epidermis. — The outside of the skin is covered 
with fine, soft scales which are matted into a thin 
sheet. This covering is like a sheet of paper pasted 
upon the skin. It is called the epider'mis. It may be 
cut and pricked without pain or bleeding. One of 
its uses is to keep the tender flesh under it from being 
hurt. 

The epidermis is waterproof. It keeps the flesh 
from drying, and keeps liquids from soaking into the 
flesh. A healthy epidermis also prevents poisons and 
disease germs from entering 
the flesh, for very few kinds 
of substances can pass through 
it. 

You are always shedding 
scales of epidermis from the 
surface of the skin, and new 
scales are always growing 
(Magnified ioo times.) next to the true skin. By 





BATHING 


25 


scraping some of the scales from the back of the hand, 
and examining them with a microscope, you may see 
how they look. 

Oil in the Skin. — The skin is kept soft by means 
of a kind of oil or fat. The oil is formed within tiny 
tubes, called oil glands , which lie deep in the skin around 
the hair roots. There are oil glands in the skin when¬ 
ever there are hairs, but more of the glands may be 
found among the hair roots on the top of the head 
than anywhere else on the body. 

Perspiration, or Sweat, — If a bare finger is held 
against a cold windowpane, the glass soon becomes 
wet. This shows that water passes off from the skin. 
The water is the perspiration , or sweat. It is formed 
in small tubes, called sweat glands , which lie deep in 
the skin on all parts of the body. It passes off through 
tiny openings which are often called pores. Perspir¬ 
ation is always passing off from the skin. Over a 
quart leaves the skin of a grown person every day, even 
on a cold day of winter. The perspiration contains 
some waste matter which has a salty taste. 

Waste Matter of the Body. — When the body works, 
its flesh wears out just as a machine wears out when 
it runs. In doing its work the body also uses up a 
great deal of food in the same way that a steam engine 
uses up coal when it runs. Flesh that has become worn 
out, and food that has been used up are waste sub¬ 
stances. They are of no more use to the body, but 
are often poisonous, and would make the body sick 


26 


BATHING 


if they were not taken away. Some waste matter is 
dissolved in the water of the perspiration, and is carried 
outside of the body by the perspiration. 

Dirt on the Skin. — The skin becomes dirty from 
three principal causes: 

1. Loosened scales of epidermis are always leaving 
the body. They may be seen on an arm where the 
clothing has kept them from flying away. Little rolls 
of the scales may be rubbed from the skin after a hot 
bath. Each person sheds about a tablespoonful of 
scales each day. 

2. When perspiration dries, the waste matters that 
were in it are left upon the skin. These substances 
have a bad odor and cause the greater part of the smell 
due to a dirty skin. 

3. Dust is blown upon the skin, and many kinds of 
substances stick to it during work and play. The 
dirt nearly always contains bacteria of decay, and very 
often it contains also the bacteria of diseases. 

When the skin is dirty, the most dangerous things 
on it are disease germs. The germs are likely to be 
carried into the flesh when the skin is cut or pricked. 
There they may grow and produce pimples, boils, 
running sores, and blood poisoning. Some of the 
disease germs in the dirt may also be carried from the 
skin to the nose or the mouth, or to food, and in that 
way they may be the cause of a cold, or typhoid fever, 
or other infectious disease. 


BATHING 


*7 

Washing the Hands and Face. — The hands are the 
parts of the body that are the most likely to become 
dirty, for they are used in working and in handling 
dirty things. Dirt on the hands is likely to do more 
harm than dirt on any other part of the body, for they 
are used to rub the mouth, nose, and eyes, and to do 
other things which might carry poisons and disease 
germs into the body. Your fingers and hands are also 
used in handling food, and all the dirt and disease 
germs which they leave in the food are likely to be 
taken into the body. Keeping your hands clean will 
help to prevent you from becoming sick. 

The face, too, is likely to become dirty, for it is sel¬ 
dom covered. If the face is dirty, the nose and the 
mouth are both likely to be dirty also. Much sickness 
is caused by breathing dirt into the nose and mouth. 
By washing your face you get rid of a great deal of the 
dirt and disease germs which might reach the inside 
of your body through the nose and the mouth. 

Washing the face and hands once a day is not enough, 
for they get dirty again within a few hours. Wash 
them when you get up in the morning, for as much 
waste matter passes off from the skin during the night 
as during the day. Wash your face and hands before 
each meal so that you will not soil your food. Wash 
them again just before going to bed so that no dirt 
or disease germs from them may harm you while you 
are asleep. Wash them after any kind of dirty work 
or play. Also wash your hands after going to the toilet. 


28 


BATHING 


A dirty basin may contain disease germs which have 
been left on it by a sick person. If a basin is dirty, 
do not use it but wash in water running from a faucet, 
or in water poured on your hands. 

Use of a Towel. — After washing the skin, dry it 
with a clean towel. If a number of persons use the 
same towel, some one who is beginning to be sick is 
likely to leave disease germs on it. A towel that is 
dirty, or smells as if it had been used, is not fit for dry¬ 
ing the skin. When you travel away from home, carry 
a clean towel for your own use; or else use paper towels 
and throw them away after you have used them. 

Combing the Hair. — Dirt and disease germs are 
often caught in the hair of the head, and sickness may 
be due to failure to keep the hair clean. Germs of 
colds and sore throats are often blown upon the hair 
from dirty streets and soiled floors. These germs may 
be rubbed from the hair upon a pillow during sleep, 
and then they may be breathed into the body, and thus 
be the cause of a cold or a sore throat. 

You remove a great deal of dirt and dust from the 
hair when you comb and brush it; and you keep dirt 
from catching among the hairs when you make them 
lie smooth and straight. By combing your hair you 
improve your health as well as your looks. 

A dirty comb and brush may carry disease germs 
into the hair. Have your own comb and brush, and 
wash them whenever they become soiled. When 
you go away from home, take them with you so that 


BATHING 


29 


you will not need to use those which have been used by 
another person. 

Washing the Hair. — Hairs do not grow from the 
top of the skin, but from roots which lie deep in the 
skin. Baldness is due to a disease of the roots and 
is often caused by disease germs growing in the skin. 
Sometimes the skin of the scalp peels off in fine flakes 
called dandruff. 

This, too, is often 
caused by disease 
germs. Washing 
the hair often helps 
to remove disease 
germs, and to keep 
it in good condi¬ 
tion. 

Nails _ The roo ^ s ex tend halfway or more through the skin. 

nails on the fingers and toes are hardened growths of 
the outer covering of the skin. Keep them trimmed 
even with the end of the flesh. Biting the nails will 
leave them rough and make the ends of the fingers 
sore. 

Many persons suppose that the finger nails may 
poison the body if they scratch their skin with them, 
or swallow a bit of nail. The nails themselves are 
not poisonous, but the dirt that collects under their 
ends often contains decaying matter and disease germs. 
Keep your nails clean for the sake of your health as 
well as of your looks. 



Hair Roots in the Skin 





30 


BATHING 


A hangnail is not a nail at all, but is a sliver of torn 
skin that hangs near the nail. Biting or pulling it 
off makes the skin sore. You can cure it by cutting 
it off close to the skin. 

Washing the Body. — The parts of the body that 
are covered with clothing do not get dirty so quickly 
as the hands and face; and yet if these parts are not 
washed often, dried perspiration will give the skin an 
unpleasant odor. This odor is a sure sign that the 
body needs washing all over. You will need to wash 
your whole body at least once a week, even in winter, 
if you would prevent its odor from becoming unpleasant. 

An Easy Way to Bathe the Body. — In taking a 
bath you will need some water, some soap, and a towel. 
Water that is warm, will soften dirt more readily 
than water that is cold. If you bathe in a warm room, 
you will be able to take plenty of time for the bath; 
but if you wash quickly in a cold room, you will feel 
bright and refreshed because of the cold. A bath¬ 
room with running water makes bathing easy; but 
even if you have no bathroom, you can easily keep 
yourself clean. 

Here is a way to take a bath quickly. Use a 
basin of warm soap suds. Rub the suds over the 
whole body and then dry the skin with a towel. In 
this way you can bathe and dry the whole body within 
five minutes. 

Use of Soap. — The oil on the skin holds dust and 
dirt fast to it. Water will not mix with the oil, and 


BATHING 


3i 


so you cannot easily cleanse the skin by washing it with 
water alone. Soap rubbed upon the skin will make 
the oil mix with the water, and in this way it will help 
nto loosen the dirt. Use 
a kind of soap which 
does not bite or sting 
the tongue when you 
itaste a bit of it. 

Bathing for Stimula¬ 
tion. — A cool bath 
will make a healthy 
person feel strong and 
active. In the morning 
it is a good plan to wet 
the whole body and dry 
it quickly by rubbing 
it with a towel. This 
causes a great deal of 
blood to flow through 
the skin and makes a 
person feel wide-awake 
and ready for work. A basin of water and a towel are 
all that are needed for such a bath. But a person 
who is weak or sickly may be harmed by a cold bath, 
for it may cool his body too much. 

If you are tired at night, a warm bath just before 
bedtime will help to quiet you for sleep. The best 
time to take a cold bath is in the morning, for it will 
rouse you up and make you ready for work. 



Washing the Hands 

Wash your hands before you eat or handle food, 
in order to prevent sickness. Soap will help to 
loosen the dirt. 






32 


BATHING 


Swimming. — Swimming is a good form of bath 
if you do not stay in cold water too long. When you 
first plunge into the water, you may feel cold, but if 
you stir around briskly, your skin will soon become 
red and warm, and you will feel bright and strong. If 
you stay in the cool water too long, the blood will 
leave the skin and you will feel cold and tired. The 
time to leave the water is as soon as you begin to feel 
chilly. 

Bathing the Sick. — When a person is sick, a 
bath will often make him feel better than almost 
anything else that can be done for him. You can 
easily give a bath to a person sick in bed by washing one 
part of his body at a time, and drying it at once. Begin 
with the face, then wash an arm, and then wash the 
other arm, then the legs, then the front of the body, 
and then the back. Cleanse the teeth and mouth also. 
A feverish person will be helped by having such a bath 
two or three times a day. 

QUESTIONS 

In what respect is the skin like leather? 

What is the epidermis f 

Of what use is the epidermis ? 

Where is perspiration formed ? 

What substances are dissolved in the water of the perspiration ? 

Of what does the dirt on the skin consist? 

What things compose the most dangerous part of dirt? 

Give some reasons why the face and hands should be kept clean. 

Give some reasons for using paper towels. 

Why should the hair be washed ? 


BATHING 


33 

In what way may combing and brushing the hair help to prevent 
sickness ? 

How may dirty nails cause poor health ? 

How may a hangnail be cured ? 

What causes the unpleasant odor of an unwashed skin ? 

Of what use is soap in bathing ? 

In what way may bathing be good for the health even when the 
body is clean? 

Of what use is a cold bath besides cleansing the body ? 

Of what use is a hot bath ? 

Describe a good way of bathing a sick person. 

For the Teacher. —This chapter gives sound hygienic reasons for performing 
the common daily acts of cleansing the skin, such as washing the hands and 
face, combing the hair, and cleaning the nails. One reason fyr cleansing the 
skin is to remove waste matter, but a more urgent reason is to remove dis¬ 
ease germs. The following points are to be emphasized: 

1. The necessity of washing the hands before handling food. 

2. The danger from the common towel and the need of individual towels. 

3. The danger from a dirty basin. 

Example is the best teacher. What facilities for washing the hands and 
face are provided in your school? 

Write to the National Tuberculosis Association, 370 Seventh Avenue, New 
York, for information regarding the Modern Health Crusade. This is a system 
in which the younger pupils earn credits for regularly doing “ Health Chores,” 
such as washing the face and hands, brushing the teeth, and eating properly. 
The system is founded on ancient knighthood. Pupils enroll as pages 
and as they progress they earn the titles of squire and knight. The Health 
Crusade has a strong appeal to the interest and pride of the pupils, to lead 
them to form good health habits. 


OV. PERS. HYG.-3 


CHAPTER IV 


CLEANING HOUSE 

Dirt and Dust. — A room must be clean, light, and 
dry in order to be healthful. Dirt is always forming 
in houses. It falls from shoes and clothing, and drops 
from packages of goods, and from wood and coal. Bits 
of wool and cotton are rubbed from clothing and car¬ 
pets, and shreds of wood are torn from floors. Finger 
marks are left on doors and windows, and dirt is made 
during work and play. Some of the dirt floats away 
as dust in every breath of air and falls in a shower 
when the air becomes quiet. 

Disease Germs in Dirt. — Dirt in houses nearly 
always contains waste matter from the body, such 
as scales of dead skin, and substances which are coughed 
from the throat or blown from the nose. These sub¬ 
stances often contain disease germs when an unhealthy 
person is in the house. They become dried and may 
float in the air as dust. If there are disease germs in 
the dirt of the room, they will rise with the dust, for 
they are even smaller and lighter than the bits of dust 
which we can see in a sunbeam. A sore throat, tuber¬ 
culosis, and diphtheria are examples of diseases which 
may be caught from the dust of dirty rooms, A dirty 


34 


CLEANING HOUSE 


35 


or dusty house is unhealthful and dangerous. Clean¬ 
ing a room helps to make it healthful as well as attrac¬ 
tive. The rooms of a dirty house have an unpleasant 
odor which flies like. Few flies will come into a house 
in which there are no bad odors. 

Sweeping. — One way to remove dirt from a room 
is to sweep it out with a broom. A living room and 
a kitchen will need sweeping at least once every day. 
While you sweep, keep the outside doors and win¬ 
dows open so that the dust will float out of the room. 
Dampening the floor will keep dust from rising when 
you sweep. Be careful to sweep in the corners of the 
room and behind the furniture, for dust and dirt are 
harmful in those places just as they are in the middle 
of the room. 

Dusting. — Sweeping will remove the larger bits of 
dirt and dust, but it will stir up the finer dust and 
spread it through the air. When the air becomes 
still, the dust will settle slowly back to the floor and 
the furniture. The cleaning will not be finished until 
the dust has been wiped from the furniture. 

A dry cloth used to dust the furniture will not catch 
and hold the dust, but will only stir it up and make 
it float off to another part of the room. Dampen the 
cloth with a little water or a little oil or kerosene so 
that it will hold the dust which is wiped up. 

To wipe up the fine dust from the floor, use a dust mop. 

Cushions and couch covers hold a great deal of dust. 
Clean them also when you sweep a room. 


36 


CLEANING HOUSE 


Cleaning Carpets. — Sweeping rugs and carpets 
with a broom will take away the dirt which lies on the 
surface, but it will not remove the dirt which sifts 
into their threads or goes through them to the floor. 

You can make carpets 
look clean by sweeping 
them while they lie on 
the floor; but the best 
way to clean them 
thoroughly is to take 
them out of doors, and 
there beat the dirt and 
dust from them. Rugs 
are more healthful than 
carpets, for the rugs 
can be taken up and 
cleaned the more easily. 
A vacuum cleaner is 
much better than a 
broom, for it sucks the dirt into a bag and keeps it 
from flying through the room. 

Closed Rooms. — Some persons think that a clean 
room will not become dirty if it is kept closed. But 
dusty air blows through cracks in the windows, doors, 
and floors. After a room has been closed for a day or 
two, the air in it will smell musty and peppery. A 
large part of these smells is due to molds. A room 
that has been closed for a few days will not be fit 
for use until it has been well aired and dusted. 





CLEANING HOUSE 


37 


Sunlight. — Sunlight is a great help in getting rid 
of molds and disease germs in a house, for it destroys 
them in the same way that it burns the skin when it 
shines strongly upon the face. If a room is flooded 
with light, few disease germs can live in it. Light will 
kill the germs even though the sun does not shine di¬ 
rectly into a room. 

Every time that you clean a room, put the mats 
out of doors in the sunlight. Raise the shades so as 
to let in the light, and leave them up for some hours. 
The light may fade the carpets, but it will make the 
room a healthful place to live in. 

A bedroom needs light all through the day, for it 
is in use longer than almost any other room in the 
house. When you get up in the morning, leave the 
shades up and a window open, in order to let light and 
air into the bedroom. Spread out the sheets and bed¬ 
clothes so that the air and sunlight will dry the per¬ 
spiration from them and kill the bacteria in the dirt 
with which they may be soiled. 

Dryness. — If a room is damp, molds grow in it, 
and disease germs which may be in it are likely to 
stay alive. Sunlight will help to dry a room. 

QUESTIONS 

Of what is house dirt composed ? 

What substances in dirt are dangerous to health? 

How should a room be swept ? 

How should a room be dusted ? 

Why is a dry cloth not a good thing to use in dusting furniture ? 


38 


CLEANING HOUSE 


Why should a carpet be cleaned ? 

Why are rugs on the floors more healthful than carpets that cover 
the whole floor? 

How should cushions be cleaned? 

What harm is done by leaving a room closed for days at a time? 

How does sunlight in rooms help to make them healthful ? 

What care should be given to a bedroom in the morning? 

For the Teacher. — The principal hygienic reason for keeping living rooms 
clean is to keep them free from disease germs. Wherever persons gather 
together indoors, there disease germs are likely to accumulate, unless the 
rooms are cleaned daily. A great danger is that from dust floating in the 
air. A test for cleanliness is the amount of dust in the air. 

Teach the pupils that they can help to keep a room clean by trying not 
to bring dirt into it. Demonstrate the correct method of sweeping a room and 
dusting the furniture. Make the school an example in cleanliness and tidiness. 


CHAPTER V 



CLOTHES 

How Clothes Warm the Body. — One of the uses of 
clothing is to keep the body warm. Clothes do not 
make heat, but the body warms itself by making its 
own heat. Clothing keeps the body warm only be¬ 
cause it keeps heat from leaving the body. 

Of What Clothes Are Made. — Most clothes are 
made of cotton, or linen, or wool, or silk. Cotton 


Silk Makers 

Silkworms, their cocoons, and full-grown silkworm moths. Silk is unwound from 
the cocoons. 


39 




40 


CLOTHES 


consists of short fibers which grow upon the seeds of 
cotton plants; linen is the stringy fibers in the stalks 
of flax plants; wool is the hair 
of sheep ; and silk is composed 
of fine threads which are un¬ 
wound from the cocoons of 
silkworms. 

Wool and Cotton. — When 
cloth is loosely woven and 
soft, a great deal of air is held 
among its threads. This air is 
a great help in preventing heat 
from leaving the body. Fur is 
warm because of the air which 
it holds. The threads of 
woolen cloth usually remain 
soft and fluffy, even after they are washed, and so 
wool makes warm clothing. 

Cotton cloth becomes hard and matted after it has 
been wet or washed, and so clothing made from it is 
not so warm as that made from wool. Linen clothing 
is about as warm as that made from cotton. 

Paper Clothing. — Clothing made from paper weighs 
but little, and yet it will keep the body as warm as 
cotton clothing. A newspaper spread under your 
coat may be used to keep your body warm when you 
have forgotten your overcoat. A few newspapers 
spread under the quilts of your bed may keep you 
warm when you cannot get enough bedclothes. 





CLOTHES 


4i 



Two Cotton Seeds and Cotton Fibers 

(Natural size.) The cotton fibers which are spun into threads grow 
upon cotton seeds. 

How Much to Wear. — Your feelings will be your 
best guide as to how much clothing to wear. Wear 
enough clothes to keep yourself warm. More clothes 
than this will be in the way, and will hinder you in 
moving the arms and legs. In winter you will need 
a thick suit of underclothes, a warm coat or waist, 
and an overcoat to put on when you go out of doors 
on cold days. 

Neck Wraps. — If cold air is never allowed to touch 
the neck, the throat will become tender and will easily 
be harmed by a slight chill. Use underclothes which 
reach up to the neck, and wear a low collar on your 
waist or shirt. When you go out of doors on a very 
cold day, button your coat up to the neck, or turn up 
the collar. If you care for your neck in this way, you 





42 


CLOTHES 


will be warmer and healthier than if you bundle it 
up in thick wraps. 

Loose Clothing. — Loose clothes keep the body 
much warmer than tight clothes, for when they are 
loose they hold a great deal of air among the layers 
of cloth (p. 40). For the same reason two thin gar¬ 
ments are warmer than a single one which weighs as 
much as the two. 

Damp Clothes. —Wet clothes are likely to be harm¬ 
ful because the vapor passing off from them takes 

heat from the skin and 
cools the body. The 
cooling may injure the 
body so much that it 
cannot overcome dis¬ 
ease germs if they 
should enter it. For 
this reason the wear¬ 
ing of damp clothing 
may help to bring on 
a cold or sore throat. 
But wet clothes are 
not likely to be harm¬ 
ful if a person keeps 
warm by exercising. When your clothes become wet, 
keep moving around and exercising until they are dry 
or until you can change them for dry ones. 

Brushing Clothes. — Clothes which are dusty and 
dirty often have disease germs on them. Brushing 




CLOTHES 


43 


your clothes and keeping them clean will help your 
health as well as your good looks. 

Brush your clothes every morning as regularly as 
you wash your face and hands. If you brush them in 
your room, the dust and disease germs will float in the 
air, and you will be likely to breathe them into your 
body. Brush them by an open window or out of doors. 

Underclothes. — Underclothes soon become dirty 
and have an unpleasant odor like that of a dirty skin. 
Change your underclothes for clean ones at least once 
a week. If you perspire a great deal, or do dirty work, 
change them as often as they become soiled. 

Many persons think that the only use of under¬ 
clothes is to keep the body warm, and that there is 
no need to wear them in summer. An important use 
of underclothing is to keep perspiration and other 
waste substances from soiling the outside clothes. 
Wear underclothes all through the year, in summer as 
well as in winter. 

Washing Clothes. — Sheets, pillowcases, table¬ 
cloths, napkins, towels, and handkerchiefs, all be¬ 
come soiled from touching the body. They will nearly 
always contain disease germs after they have been used 
by any one who has an infectious disease. But when 
they are clean and white, they are not likely to have 
any germs of disease on them. The reasons for wash¬ 
ing underclothes and household linen are to make them 
clean and white, and also to remove or kill the disease 
germs which may be on them. 


44 


CLOTHES 


Use of Soap. — A great deal of the dirt on clothes 
consists of oily substances which water alone will not 
dissolve. Soap in the wash water will help to dissolve 
the oil, and then the dirt may easily be rubbed or 
rinsed from the clothes (p. 30). In the place of soap 
some persons use soda, but soda may soften the fibers 
of the cloth and weaken the clothes. Use soap rather 
than soda. 

Boiling Clothes. — Boiling clothes is a great help 
in cleansing them from dirt. The steam bubbling 
through the threads loosens the dirt, and the hot water 
dissolves the stains from the clothes and helps to make 
them white. The boiling also drives off the smell 
which is in dirty clothes. But one of the greatest 
reasons for boiling clothes is that the heat kills the dis¬ 
ease germs which may be in them. 

Ironing. — Ironing clothes after they have been 
washed helps to keep them clean. The ironing makes 
them so smooth that they have no folds or creases to 
catch dust and dirt. It makes the surface of starched 
cloth so hard and polished that dirt will fall from the 
cloth instead of sticking to it. The heat of the iron¬ 
ing also kills the disease germs which may be on the 
cloth. 


QUESTIONS 

How do clothes keep the body warm? 

How can you know how much clothing to wear? 

Why is woolen clothing usually warmer than cotton clothing ? 
Why are loose clothes warmer than tight clothes? 


CLOTHES 


45 


How may damp clothes be harmful to health? 

Give some reasons why clothes should be kept clean. 

Why should clothes not be brushed in a room? 

Give some uses of underclothing. 

Give some reasons why soiled underclothes should be washed. 
Of what use is soap in washing clothes ? 

Why should clothes be boiled when they are washed? 

How does ironing clothes increase their healthfulness? 


For the Teacher. — In teaching the subject of clothes, the principal point 
to be emphasized is the cleanliness of clothes. Teach the need of underwear 
for cleanliness. Explain the effects of various acts in laundering in removing 
and destroying disease germs. 

The great principle to be taught as to the amount and distribution of cloth¬ 
ing is that the sensation of the wearer is a reliable guide. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE FEET 

The Feet and Health. — The feet are put to harder 
work than any other part of the body, for they bear 
the whole weight of the body for hours at a time. They 
are more likely to be injured than other parts of the 
body, for they are often in places which are cold, wet, 
or dangerous. If anything is the matter with them, 
all the rest of the body will suffer also. Many persons 
suffer tortures whenever they stand or walk, because 
they did not learn to care for their feet while they were 
young. The care of the feet is of great importance in 
preserving the health of the rest of the body. 

Fitting Shoes to the Feet. — Soreness, pains, and 
weakness of the feet are often caused 
by shoes which do not fit the feet. 
A well-fitting shoe will be shaped 
like the foot. 

Straight Inner Edge of a Shoe. — 

If the feet are placed side by side, 
they will touch each other from their 
Feet in Their Natu- toes to their heels, for their inner 
ral Shape edges are almost straight. If a shoe 

fo*t ar^naturaUy almost | S Sha P ed t0 fit 3 f ° 0t Properly, its 

straight. inner edge must be almost straight. 

46 





THE FEET 


47 


Shoes with straight inner edges can now be bought at 
most shoe stores. 

While a person is standing, his foot is longer and 
wider than while he is sitting, for the weight of the 



X-Ray Photograph of a Bare X-Ray Photograph of a Foot 
Foot That Has a Natural in a Shoe with a Straight 
Shape Inner Edge 


body flattens the arch. A shoe is not large enough un¬ 
less it is as broad and long as the foot is while it is 
bearing the weight of the body. 

Pointed Shoes. — The longest part of a foot is its 
inner edge from the heel to the tip of the great toe. 
Tf a shoe fits the foot perfectly, its tip will not be 






48 


THE FEET 


opposite the middle of the foot, but opposite the great 
toe. A shoe may be made pointed if its inner edge is 
straight, and its tip is placed at the end of the inner 

edge. This is be¬ 
cause the outer edge 
of a foot is much 
shorter than its in¬ 
ner edge. A shoe 
which fits the right 
foot will not fit the 
left foot. 

Proper Shape and Wrong Shape of Shoes Ingrowing Toe- 

The shoes on the left allow the toes to lie naturally, nails_If the DOint 

They have straight inner edges. The shoes on the * . * 

right cramp the toes together, for the point of the of a shoe is not Op- 
shoe is opposite the middle of the foot. . 

posite the great toe, 
the curved inner edge of the shoe may press the great 
toe sidewise and make its edge lie upon the second 
toe. The pressure will then push the flesh up against 
the sharp edge of the nail of the great toe, and will 
produce a painful sore, called an ingrowing toenail. 

You may prevent or cure an ingrowing toenail by 
wearing a wide shoe which has a straight inner edge. 
This shoe will allow the great toe room to lie apart 
from the second toe, and there will be no pressure to 
push the flesh against the nail. 

Trimming the Toenails. — If the sides or corners of 
a toenail are trimmed, the nail may not be wide enough 
to cover the end of the toe. The flesh may then be 
pressed against the side of the nail. Cut the outer end 







THE FEET 


49 



of the nail squarely across 
and even with the tip of 
the toe. Do not cut off 
the corners or sides of the 
nail, but let them grow 
beyond the toe so that they 
will cover and protect the 
flesh. 

Corns. — If badly-fitting 
shoes are worn, the epider¬ 
mis grows thick at the 
places which are pressed or 
rubbed. These spots of 
thickened skin are called 
corns. They are tender 
and painful, for the shoes 
press them into the flesh. 

If you always wear well¬ 
fitting shoes, you will not have corns. 

Arch of the Foot. — If you wet the bare sole of your 

foot and step upon 
a piece of dark- 
colored blotting 
paper, a print will 
be left in the exact 
shape of the parts 
of the sole which 
touch the paper. 
The print will show 


Toes Squeezed Together 

Thfese toes have been cramped out of 
shape by narrow shoes which did not 
have straight inner edges. 



Print of a Well-shaped Foot 

The print shows that the middle part of the foot does 
not touch the floor when a person stands. 


OV. PERS. HYG.—4 





So 


THE FEET 


that the foot rests upon the heel and the ball behind 
the toes. The middle of the inner edge of the sole does 
not touch the paper, and you can put your finger under 
it. The foot is in the shape of a bow, or arch, which 
supports the body as springs support an automobile. 
The arch lessens the jolts and jars caused by running 
and jumping. 

Weak Ankles and Flat Feet. — Many persons have 
weak ankles, and when they walk, they turn their feet 
sidewise at their ankles. The arch of the foot is held 
firm and upright by the muscles of the lower leg, just 
as a tent pole is held firm and upright by the guy ropes 
of the tent. If the muscles are weak, the foot turns 
partly over and is painful during walking or standing. 
If the foot turns over so far that the top of the arch 
touches the ground, the person is flat-footed, and is 
partly crippled. A print of the sole of a flat foot shows 
that the sole touches the ground along its whole 
length. 

You can strengthen the ankles and prevent flat feet 
by exercising the muscles of the lower leg. One of the 
best exercises is to walk with the toes pointing in as far 
as possible five minutes each day. 

Cold Feet. — The feet are kept warm by the warm 
blood which flows through them. Tight shoes hinder 
the flow of the blood and make the feet cold. Shoes 
and stockings which are thin and loose allow the warm 
blood to flow freely, and are warmer than those which 
are thick and tight. 


THE FEET 


5i 


Perspiring Feet. — If the feet become wet with per¬ 
spiration, they may feel as cold as though they were 
wet with rain. A good way to keep the feet dry and 
warm is to wear thick inner soles in the shoes. The 
soles will soak up the perspiration as fast as it is formed. 
Take the soles out each night and dry them. 

Rubber Overshoes. — Rubber overshoes are water¬ 
tight and will keep dampness from reaching your feet 
when you walk in wet places. But they also keep per¬ 
spiration from passing off from the feet. If you wear 
them in a warm room, your feet will soon become wet 
with perspiration, and will feel cold when you go out 
of doors. Put on your overshoes when you go out of 
doors in the wet, but take them off as soon as you go 
into the house. 

QUESTIONS 

What parts of a foot usually touch the floor when one walks or stands? 

What is the shape of the inner edge of a shoe which fits well? 

Opposite which toe should the point of a shoe be placed ? 

What is the cause of an ingrowing toenail ? 

How may ingrowing toenails be prevented ? 

In what shape should a toenail be trimmed ? 

What is a corn? 

How may corns be prevented ? 

Describe the arch of the foot. 

What is the cause of weak ankles? 

Describe an exercise which will strengthen the ankles and prevent 
flat feet. 

How may tight shoes cause cold feet? 

How may perspiration cause cold feet ? 

How do inner soles worn in the shoes help to keep the feet warm ? 

Why is it harmful to wear rubber overshoes in a warm room ? 


52 


THE FEET 


For the Teacher. — There are two practical subjects to be taught in the 
study of the feet: 

1. Fitting, shoes. 

2. Exercises for correcting weak ankles and flat feet. 

Three points to be considered in choosing a well-fitting shoe are: 

1. Its inner edge shall be straight. 

2. The point of the shoe shall be on one side,—on the side of the great toe. 

3. The shoe shall be as broad as the foot of the person while standing. 

Inspect the shoes of the pupils, and see how they conform to these standards. 

The prevention and treatment of corns, callosities, and ingrowing nails 
consist principally in wearing shoes that are shaped like the foot. 

Have several pupils stand barefooted on a table, and examine their ankles 
and feet. Try to put a forefinger under the inner edge of the foot. The 
arch will be high in some feet, and almost flat in others. 

While a boy is standing naturally, grasp his ankle and try to turn it sidewise. 
A normal ankle is firm, but a weak ankle is loose and may be turned easily; 
those who have weak ankles are likely to have low or flat arches. About 
one fifth of all children have weak ankles.' 

Demonstrate the corrective exercise of walking “ pigeon-toed,” — that 
is, with the toes turned inward as far as possible. Notice how firm an ankle 
is while the toes are turned in. This exercise lifts up the inner edge of the 
foot, and produces a pain in the muscles upon the outer part of the shins, show¬ 
ing that those muscles are being exercised. 

Examining the ankles and supervising the corrective exercises are among 
the duties of the physical trainer of a school. 


CHAPTER VII 
THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 

The Nose. — The nose has two hollow tubes through 
which air passes into the body. Thin curtains or 
folds of bone and flesh hang down in the tubes to 
warm and purify the air of the breath. 

Mucus. — The inside of the nose and throat is 
moist with a slippery liquid which looks like the white of 
an egg, and is called mucus. This is the substance 
which comes from the nose when it is blown, and from 
the throat during a cough. 

Mucus is somewhat sticky. It catches dust and 
disease germs which are breathed into the nose, and 
prevents them from going deep into the body. When 
you have a cold or sore throat, a great deal of mu¬ 
cus will be found in your nose and throat. This mu¬ 
cus will contain germs of the sickness. 

Use of a Handkerchief. — The natural way to cleanse 
the nose is to blow the mucus from it. This will also 
remove dirt and disease germs from the nose. When 
you blow your nose, always use a handkerchief in order 
to catch the disease germs and keep them from spread¬ 
ing to other persons. 

Do not use a handkerchief after it has become dirty, 
for you might take germs from it back into your body 

S3 


54 


THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


and so cause a slight cold to become a bad one. Do not 
use a handkerchief which another person has used, 
for you might catch a cold from him, or give him a cold 
when you return it. When you 
wash the handkerchiefs, boil 
them in order to destroy the 
disease germs which may be 
on them. 

Spitting. — Grippe, tonsil¬ 
litis, whooping cough, diph¬ 
theria, and tuberculosis are 
some of the diseases which 
are caused by living germs. 
In all these forms of sickness 
the disease germs are given 
off with the mucus from the 
nose and throat. If the mucus 
is spit upon the floor or pave¬ 
ment, it may become dried and blown away as dust, 
and yet the disease germs may remain alive and cause 
the disease in any one who breathes in the dust. 
The germs of tuberculosis may nearly always be found 
in the dust which blows from a city street, for careless 
persons who have tuberculosis often go about spitting 
on pavements and streets. 

Spitting on a floor or pavement is dangerous to health. 
In many cities there are signs which forbid spitting 
in public places. Spitting is largely a habit. It is 
seldom necessary for any one to spit in a public place. 



Cleansing the Nose 

The proper way to cleanse the nose 
is to blow it upon a handkerchief. 




THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


55 


Remove the mucus from your nose and throat before 
you go among people. Leave the mucus in the gutter 
or on the ground where there are no people. 

A Stopped-up Nose. — When you cannot breathe 
through your nose, you feel dull and uncomfortable. 
You cannot do your best work when your nose is 
stopped up. If you have to breathe through your 
mouth, find out 
what is the matter 
with your nose, and 
have it cured. 

There are three 
common causes of a 
stopped-up nose. 

1. The nose may 
be full of mucus. 

This can be cleared 
out by blowing the 
nose. 

2. The nose may 
be stopped up be¬ 
cause the folds of 
its lining are swollen photograph o{ a model showing how the inside o( 

and puffed up with the nose, throat, and mouth would look if the head 
* . were opened in halves. 

blood. Blowing 

the nose hard will make the swelling worse, for it will 
force a great deal of blood into the nose. If you can¬ 
not clear your nose by blowing it lightly, you will do 
harm by blowing it hard. 










56 


THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


3. The nose may be stopped up with lumps of soft 
flesh, called adenoids (ad'e-noidz), growing just be¬ 
hind it. 

Adenoids. — Adenoids are folds and tufts of soft 
flesh growing in the upper part of the throat behind 
the nose. They partly close the openings of the nose, 
and are a great hindrance to breathing. Most children 
who breathe through the mouth do so because they 
have adenoids. 

Enlarged Tonsils. — Breathing may also be hin¬ 
dered by lumps of flesh called enlarged tonsils. If 

the tonsils are enlarged, 
they will look like two red 
marbles, one on each side 
of the throat, half hidden 
in the flesh just above the 
back end of the tongue. A 
person who has enlarged 
tonsils usually has adenoids 
also. Adenoids and en¬ 
larged tonsils cause a great 

Healthy tonsils are thin and flat, and can deal of poor health and sick- 

hardiy be seen. ness. Disease germs grow 

in them and produce tonsillitis, rheumatism, and 
heart disease. Children who have them usually snore 
and sleep poorly because the openings of their noses 
are small. They have to breathe with their mouths 
open, their noses and upper jaws become narrow and 
pointed, and their upper lips seem too short for their 



Enlarged Tonsils 




THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


57 


teeth. They are often uncomfortable with stopped-up 
noses, and they cannot put their minds upon their 
lessons. They are often weak and sickly without 
seeming to have a cause for their weakness. 

If you have to breathe through your mouth for 
the greater part of the time, go to a doctor and find out 
if you have adenoids or large tonsils. If you have 
them, let the doctor operate on you and remove them. 

A Coated Tongue. — The surface of the tongue is 
somewhat like the surface of velvet cloth. This furry 
covering catches and holds many of the things that are 
in the mouth. Among the substances which may 
usually be found on the tongue are dust which has 
been breathed in, mucus like that in the nose, dead 
scales from the skin which lines the mouth, bacteria 
of decay, and disease germs. These substances often 
form a thick white or yellow coating on the tongue 
when a person is in poor health, or is sick. The coat¬ 
ing itself may cause sickness. 

Bad Breath. — Many kinds of bacteria may always 
be found in the mouth. If the mouth is dirty, it 
swarms with bacteria that produce a kind of decay, and 
unpleasant odors in the breath. Cleansing the mouth 
two or three times a day will lessen the odors, and help 
to remove the bacteria. 

Disease Germs in the Mouth. — Disease germs may 
enter the mouth with impure air, or with impure 
food, or with dirty substances which are put into the 
mouth. They may grow and multiply in the mouth 


58 


THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


and may spread through the body and cause sickness. 
Cleansing the mouth will help to protect the body from 
disease germs. 

How to Cleanse the Mouth. — The way to cleanse 
the mouth is to wash it with water. Rinsing the 
mouth and gargling will not remove all the dirt, for the 
mucus is somewhat sticky and holds the dirt fast to 
the skin until it is rubbed off. When you wash your 
face, rub the tongue, the inside of the cheeks, and the 
top of the mouth with a finger, or a clean cloth, or, 
best of all, with a toothbrush. By doing this you will 
loosen the coating that is on the tongue, and remove 
the dirt and decaying substances from the whole in¬ 
side of the mouth. 

Care of the Mouth in Sickness. — In most forms of 
sickness there is an uncomfortable taste of dryness 
and stickiness which is caused by the coating on the 
tongue. Cleansing the mouth and teeth several times 
a day will remove the unpleasant taste. When you 
take care of a sick person, cleanse his mouth every 
time that you wash his face and hands. 

Putting Things into the Mouth. — The germs of 
colds, sore throats, tuberculosis, and most other in¬ 
fectious diseases are found in the mouths and noses of 
those who have these forms of sickness. The germs 
may stick to anything which is put into the sick per¬ 
son’s mouth. If he wets his fingers with his tongue in 
order to turn a leaf, he may leave the germs on his 
book. If he touches the point of his pencil to his tongue 


THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


59 


when he writes, he may leave some germs on the pen¬ 
cil. In these and similar ways germs of disease are 
often scattered 
where they may 
reach other persons. 

If you touch your 
tongue with a pencil 
point every few sec¬ 
onds while you are 
writing, break your¬ 
self of the habit. If 
you use a pencil or 
pen which an un¬ 
healthy person has 
touched to his 
mouth, you may 
catch a disease from 
him. Haveyour 
own pencils and 
pens, and when you 
are not using them, keep them in your desk away 
from those of other children. 

QUESTIONS 

What becomes of dust which is breathed into the nose ? 

What is mucus ? Of what use is it ? 

How may the nose be kept clean ? 

What are some of.the causes of a stopped-up nose? 

How can you clear the nose when it is stopped up ? 

What are adenoids? 

What are enlarged tonsils? 



An Unhealthful Act 

A pencil touched to the mouth may carry disease 
germs. 






6o 


THE NOSE AND THE MOUTH 


What harm is done by adenoids and enlarged tonsils ? 

Give some reasons why you should always carry a handkerchief. 

What harm may be done by using a dirty handkerchief? 

What harm may come from spitting? 

Name some diseases which may be spread by the habit of spitting. 

What harm may come from a dirty mouth ? 

What is a common cause of bad breath? 

Of what does the coating on the tongue of an unhealthy person 
consist ? 

How may the mouth be cleansed ? 

When a person is sick, what care should be taken of his mouth ? 

What harm may come from the habit of putting things into the 
mouth ? 

For the Teacher. — Cleanliness of the nose and mouth is as important as 
that of the face and hands. The following subjects are to be emphasized: 

1. Cleansing the mouth by brushing the top of the tongue with a tooth¬ 
brush. 

2. Cleansing the nose by blowing it. The use of a handkerchief. The 
need of a handkerchief and its cleanliness. Inspect the handkerchiefs of the 
pupils, and encourage them to have clean ones at least once a day. 

3. Disease germs in mucus. Spitting and the disposal of mucus. 

4. A stopped-up nose, and mouth breathing. Adenoids and enlarged ton¬ 
sils, and the harm they do, and their removal. The work of the nurse and the 
medical inspector in discovering and correcting defects of the throat and nose. 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE TEETH 

Teeth and Good Health. — The teeth have a great 
deal to do with the health of the body. Those who 
have poor teeth cannot chew their food well, and so 
they do not get the strength that they should from the 
food, and they often suffer from indigestion and head¬ 
ache. Germs of disease may lie in a decayed tooth, 
or in dirt between the teeth, and from there may spread 
to the rest of the body. Decayed and dirty teeth are 
the direct cause of a great deal of sickness. • 

Shapes of the Teeth. — In each half of a jaw the 
two front teeth are thin and sharp like chisels, and 
are used for cutting bites from food. The next tooth 
is shaped like a blunt pick and is called the eyetooth. 
The rest of the teeth have large flat tops, and are used 
for grinding food. They are often called double teeth , 
or molars. 

Sets of Teeth. — Two sets of teeth grow in the 
mouth during a lifetime. Those in the first set begin 
to appear when a child is about six months old, and 
when he is about two years old he will have a full set. 
Then there will be ten teeth in each jaw, making 
twenty in all. Each jaw will contain four front teeth, 
two eyeteeth, and four double teeth. 

61 


62 


THE TEETH 



Upper Teeth of a Five-Year-Old 
Child 


There are ten teeth on each jaw, which 
are replaced later by a second set of 
ten. 



Upper Teeth of a Ten-Year-Old 
Child 

There are twelve teeth on each jaw, 
most of them permanent. The end 
teeth are sixth-year molars. 


At about the age of six years some of the first teeth 
become loose and drop out, but a new tooth soon 
grows in the place of each one that is lost. One by 
one the first teeth drop out until, at about the age of 



Upper Teeth of a Fifteen-Year- 
Old Child 

They number fourteen. The end teeth 
are the second permanent molars. 



Upper Teeth of a Grown Person 


There are sixteen teeth on each jaw. 
The end ones are the wisdom teeth. On 
one side these teeth happen to be crowded 
and irregular. This is due to lack of care 
in childhood. 











THE TEETH 


63 


fourteen, all of the first set are gone, and in their places 
are twenty teeth of the second set. Twelve more 
double teeth also grow in the back of the mouth, mak¬ 
ing in all thirty-two teeth in the second set. 

Preserving the Teeth. — If a tooth of the first set 
is lost, another tooth will grow in its place; but if a 
tooth of the second set is lost, the jaw will not form 
another tooth in its place. Few persons have full 
sets of teeth, for most persons allow them to become 
injured or decayed. Yet all the teeth of the second 
set may be preserved through a lifetime if proper care 
is given to them. 

Sixth-year Molars. — The first set of teeth con¬ 
tain only two double teeth on each side of a jaw. If 
there are three double teeth on either side of a jaw, 
the tooth that is farthest back is the first tooth of the 
second set. It appears when the child is about six 
years old, and is called the sixth-year molar. If it is 
lost, another tooth will not grow in its place. 

Many persons suppose that the sixth-year molars 
belong to the first set of teeth, because they appear 
while a child is young. Many are also careless about 
preserving those teeth, because they suppose that 
other teeth will grow in their places if they are lost. 
These are among the largest and the most useful of all 
the teeth, and yet they are often lost while a child is 
only eight or ten years old. The time to begin to care 
for them and for all the rest of the teeth is before any 
of them show signs of decay. 


64 


THE TEETH 


Structure of a Tooth. — A tooth is composed prin¬ 
cipally of a kind of hard bone called dentine (den'tin). 
The dentine is covered with a thin sheet of hard sub¬ 
stance called enam'el. The inner part of the dentine con¬ 
tains blood tubes and is painful when it is touched. 

Decayed Teeth. — If a tooth is injured, bacteria 
may grow in it and cause the dentine to decay. En¬ 
amel'which is sound and whole will protect a tooth from 
bacteria; but it may become cracked 
by biting upon fruit pits or other 
hard substances, or it may become 
softened by substances which are 
formed in the dirt of the mouth. 
Then bacteria may reach the dentine 
and cause it to decay. 

Toothache. — Decayed dentine is 
soft and black. It crumbles and 
leaves a hole in the tooth. If the 
hole is deep, the tooth will be tender 
and painful. The most common 
cause of toothache is a decayed tooth. 

Use of a Toothbrush. — If teeth are kept clean, 
they are likely to remain sound and firm through a 
whole lifetime, because cleanliness will protect them 
from bacteria of decay. In order to clean the teeth, 
you will need a toothbrush and a little warm water. 
Brush the teeth on their inner sides as well as on their 
outer sides. Brush the back ones as well as the front 
ones. Rub the brush up and down as well as sidewise, 






THE TEETH 


65 



so that the bristles will reach between the teeth and 
remove the dirt which is wedged there. After you 
have gone over the teeth, rub the toothbrush over 
the* tongue and roof of the mouth in order to cleanse 
them as well as the teeth (p. 58). 

Brush your teeth every morning when you get up, 
for much dirt col¬ 
lects on them dur¬ 
ing the hours of 
sleep. It is also a 
good plan to brush 
them after each 
meal, so as to re¬ 
move the bits of 
food that may be 
left on them. 

A dirty tooth¬ 
brush may contain 
disease germs and 
be dangerous to 
health. After brush¬ 
ing the teeth, rinse 
the toothbrush well 
in clean water so as 
to remove all dirt Brushing the Teeth 

from it. Then put The regular use of a toothbrush promotes both 
. health and good looks. 

the brush in a 

clean, dry place, where it will not become dusty or 
soiled. 


OV. PERS. HYG.-S 





66 


THE TEETH 


Use of a Tooth Powder. — A hard, brownish sub¬ 
stance often collects upon the teeth and prevents 
small cracks and holes from being seen when they 
first begin to form. Using a tooth powder on the 
brush is a great help in rubbing away this substance 
and in keeping the teeth clean and white. 

Some of the sugar in food may remain between the 
teeth, and there may turn to sour substances which 
are likely to soften the teeth and so cause them to de¬ 
cay. Eating a great deal of candy may cause bad teeth. 
A tooth powder made of chalk will destroy these sour 
substances, and so will help to preserve the teeth. 

Use of a Toothpick. — Bits of food may become 
wedged between the teeth so tightly that they can¬ 
not be removed with a toothbrush. There they may 
decay and cause the teeth to decay also. Remove 
them with a soft toothpick, or with a waxed thread 
or dental floss passed between the teeth. Do not 
use a pin or other hard pick, for fear of breaking the 
enamel and so starting a spot of decay. 

Filling Teeth. — A broken or decayed tooth does 
not heal like a sore spot on the skin, but sometimes 
a dentist can repair it. If one of your teeth begins 
to decay, go to a dentist and have the hollow part 
cleaned out and filled. Filling the tooth does not 
hurt if it is done while the hole is small. If a tooth 
is filled while it is still strong, it may be made to last 
a lifetime. Go to a dentist once or twice a year to 
find out if there are any holes in your teeth. Have 


THE TEETH 


67 



each tooth filled as soon as the tiniest hole is seen in 
it. If you do this, you are not likely to have tooth¬ 
ache, or to lose a tooth. The expense and trouble are 
small if you attend to the holes as soon as they appear. 

Filling Children’s 
Teeth. — The back 
teeth of the first set 
do not drop out until 
a child is about twelve 
or fourteen years old. 

They may begin to 
decay while a child is 
only two or three 
years old, and then 
they may give trouble 
for years with sore¬ 
ness or aching. Have 
the teeth of the first 
set cleaned and filled 
as careful lv as those 


A Pleasant Visit to the Dentist 

Go to a dentist and have your teeth cleaned 
and filled before they become tender and sore. 


of the second set. 

Disease Germs in 
Decayed Teeth. — It 

is almost impossible to keep the holes in decayed teeth 
clean. If disease germs should enter the mouth, they 
may lie in the holes in decayed teeth, and may multiply 
to great numbers. From there they may spread 
through the body. Two kinds of disease germs which 
may often be found in decayed teeth are those which 






68 


THE TEETH 


cause tonsillitis and rheumatism. One of the prin¬ 
cipal reasons for having decayed teeth filled is to pre¬ 
vent disease germs from growing in them. 

In many schools doctors and dentists are appointed 
to examine the teeth of the pupils and to assist the 
children in the care of their teeth. 

Pulling Teeth. — It may be impossible to fill a tooth 
that is greatly decayed. Such a tooth is dangerous 
to health, for it may be the hiding place of disease 
germs. It is best to have it pulled out. But remem¬ 
ber that nearly every tooth may be saved if it is filled 
as soon as it begins to decay. 

Uneven Teeth. — If a few of the teeth are out of 
line with the others, the opposite teeth will not 
meet, and it will be impossible to chew well. For 
this reason crooked and irregular teeth may be the 
cause of weakness and poor health. If your teeth are 
not in an even row, go to a dentist and have the row 
straightened. 

The Teeth and Adenoids. — The teeth in each jaw 
are arranged in a half circle. If a child has adenoids, 
the half circle of the upper jaw will become flattened 
sidewise, and its front part will be pointed. Then 
the upper teeth will not meet the lower ones perfectly, 
and the front upper teeth will extend beyond the lips. 
If the upper lip is too short to cover the teeth, the cause 
is nearly always adenoids (p. 56). 

If the jaw is deformed by adenoids, it may be shaped 
properly by a dentist if the adenoids are first removed. 


THE TEETH 


69 


QUESTIONS 

How may the teeth affect the health of the body? 

How many sets of teeth grow in the mouth during a lifetime ? 
How many teeth are in the first set ? in the second set ? 

At about what age does a child get the first tooth of the second set ? 
What is the sixth-year molar? 

Describe the structure of a tooth. 

What are some causes of decay in teeth? 

What is the most common cause of toothache ? 

How may the use of a toothbrush help to keep the teeth from de¬ 
caying? 

Of what use is tooth powder? a toothpick? 

When should the teeth be brushed? 

Name two kinds of disease germs which are often found in de¬ 
cayed teeth. 

How may a decayed tooth be repaired? 

When should a decayed tooth be filled? 

Why is it important to have a decayed sixth-year molar filled ? 
How may the health of the body be harmed by teeth which are 
set irregularly in the jaws? 

What effect do adenoids have on the shape of the upper jaw ? 


For the Teacher. — One important hygienic reason for the care of the teeth 
is that of protection against disease germs. A decayed tooth is like a wound 
or ulcer of the skin, and is an open way through which disease germs may 
enter the body. 

The causes of decay extend back to early infancy while the teeth are forming. 
Condensed milk and most other artificial baby foods are often deficient in 
lime and other elements which are needed in forming hard teeth. A child 
whose first front teeth decay early will nearly always be found to have been 
fed on condensed milk or other artificial food. A baby that is properly fed 
forms hard teeth which are likely to remain sound for a lifetime. 

The principal means of preserving the teeth are: 

1. The frequent and regular use of a toothbrush. 

2. Filling tiny holes as soon as they appear in the teeth. 

Emphasize the importance of the care of the first set of teeth. Decay 
in them is as dangerous as decay in the second set. 

Explain the necessity of frequent visits to a dentist. Point out the danger to 
the teeth from biting hard substances and cracking nuts. 


CHAPTER IX 


ORGANS AND CELLS 

Organs. — The machinery of a man’s body is com¬ 
posed of many parts, each of which has its own work 
to do. A part of the body which has a special work 
to do is called an organ: The engine of an automobile 
might be called an organ. Your hand is an organ with 
which you grasp and hold objects. 

Organs of Voluntary Work. — When a man works 
or plays, he uses two sets of organs: 

1. He produces motions by means of organs called 
muscles. 

2. He thinks by means of an organ called the brain. 

You can direct your muscles and your brain and make 
them act as you choose; and so they are called organs 
for voluntary work. Nearly every voluntary act which 
you do is either a motion or a thought. When you 
build a box, you use your muscles in measuring the 
boards, cutting them to the proper size, and nailing 
them together. You also use your brain in thinking 
about the plan of the box. When you write, you use 
your hands in forming letters and your brain in think¬ 
ing about what you write. Nearly every voluntary 
act is done by means of the muscles and the brain. 


70 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


7 i 


Organs which Support Life. — The life of the body 
is supported by food and air. The body uses its food 
and air for three purposes: 

1. It grows and repairs itself by building lifeless 
food into living flesh. 

2. It warms itself. 

3. It produces its own power for driving its ma¬ 
chinery. 

The principal actions by which food and air support 
life, and the organs which carry on the actions, are as 
follows: 

1. Digestion, or the preparation of food to enter the 
blood, is done by five organs, — the mouth , the stomach , 
the intestine (ln-tes'tm), the pan'creas , and the liver. 

2. Breathing, or taking air into the blood, is done by 
the lungs. 

3. Circulation, or carrying food and air through the 
body, is done by the heart and blood tubes. 

4. Building new flesh is done by every living part 
of the body. 

5. Oxidation, or the joining of food or flesh to air 
in a slow burning in order to produce heat and power, 
is done principally by the muscles. 

6. Excretion, or getting rid of the burned food, is 
done principally by the kidneys , the skin , and the lungs. 

7. Nerve action, or controlling and directing the 
actions of all the other parts of the body, is done by 
the brain , the spinal cord , and the nerves . 


72 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


Good Health. — When the body is in good health, 
each living action is balanced with all the rest so per¬ 
fectly that the body looks and acts the same from day 
to day. Yet the living body is constantly changing, 
and some of its parts are built entirely new every few 
days or weeks. A person, for example, is always shed¬ 
ding the outer covering of the skin and forming a new 
one; and yet the skin does not change its appearance 
from day to day, for the new part almost exactly 
replaces the old. 

When an organ acts imperfectly, all the other organs 
suffer and the body is in poor health, or is sick. If, 
for example, the stomach does not do its work well, the 
body does not get the proper amount of food and does 
not grow or repair its worn parts, but becomes thin 
and weak. 

Every person can make the work of the organs hard, 
or he can do a great deal to help the organs to do their 
work well. Many persons make themselves sick by 
putting the wrong foods into their stomachs, or by 
eating too much food. On the other hand a person 
can build up his weight and strength by choosing the 
proper foods and eating them in the proper way. He 
can help his lungs by breathing fresh air; his heart and 
muscles by taking exercise; his skin by bathing; and 
his brain by sleep. The object of the study of physi¬ 
ology and hygiene is to learn about the various organs 
of the body, and how to care for them and keep them 
in good order. 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


73 


Cells. — An organ of the human body is like a ma¬ 
chine which is composed of many parts. The smallest 
parts of which an organ is composed are called cells. 
A watch contains smaller parts than any other common 
machine, and some of its parts are about as small as 
the eye can see 
without a magni¬ 
fying glass. The 
cells of the body are 
so small that a mi¬ 
croscope is needed 
in order to see the 
largest of them. 

Each organ is 
composed of cells 
which have their 
own shape and ar¬ 
rangement. Scrape 
some powder from 
the skin on the back 
of the hand and ex¬ 
amine it with a microscope. You will see thin, flat 
cells which are like tiny scales. Cells like these cover 
the whole body, and line the mouth and nose and the 
tubes which extend into the body. 

Muscle cells are like short strings lying side by side. 
Bone cells are shaped like wheat grains, and are thickly 
covered with hairs. If a piece of flesh is examined un¬ 
der a microscope, the organ or part of the body from 



Looking through a Microscope 

Cells are so small that a microscope is needed in 
order to see them. 




74 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


which it came can be told by the shape and arrange¬ 
ment of its cells. 

Every living thing is composed of cells. In the 
smallest and simplest living things, each animal or 
plant consists of a single cell. Put a bundle of grass 
or hay about the size of your thumb into a glass of 
water and leave it in a warm place for a week or two. 

If you then look at a drop 
of the water with a micro¬ 
scope, you will see tiny 
round objects swimming in 
the water. Each one is an 
animal which consists of a 
single cell and is called a 
paramecium (par-a-me'shi- 
um), or slipper animal'cule. 
It takes its food and air 
from the water and gives 
off its waste matter to the 
water. When it grows to 
full size, it divides itself into two parts, each of which 
is a fully formed animal, like the animal before it 
divided. 

Every living thing begins life as a single cell. A 
frog’s egg is a single large cell which divides again and 
again until it becomes the countless millions of cells 
which compose the body of a full-grown frog. The 
first cells which are formed are round like the egg it¬ 
self. As the cells multiply, some become flattened and 



Parameciums 

(Magnified ioo times.) Each para¬ 
mecium consists of a single cell which 
eats, breathes, and grows like a cell in a 
human body. 



ORGANS AND CELLS 


75 


form the outer covering of the skin; some become 
stringlike and form the muscles; and others form all 
the other parts of the frog’s body. 

Each cell in the body of a frog or a man lives and 
grows as if it were a separate animal. It lives on food 
and air which are brought to it by the blood, and it 
gives off its waste matters to the blood to be carried 
away. But unlike an independent animal, each cell 
of a man’s body must obey messages brought by a 
nerve, telling it when the body has need for it to work. 

Each organ of the body is like a factory, and each 
cell is like a workman. The materials which the cells 
use in their work are food and air. The products which 
they make are all the different substances which the 
body forms and all the various kinds of work which 
it does. When you study the various organs of the 
body and how they do their work, you learn about their 
cells. 

Living Matter. — Cells which are growing or doing 
work are soft and jelly like, and are composed of three 
kinds of substances: 

1. Water. 

2. Protein (pro'te-m). 

3. Minerals. 

Protein is the most important part of every living 
thing. The white of an egg, lean meat, and the sticky 
part of bread dough are almost pure protein mixed 
with minerals and water. The minerals are the 


76 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


substances which are left as ashes when flesh is 
burned. Two of the principal minerals are lime and 
salt. 

Every living cell carries on two actions: 

1. It grows and repairs itself. 

2. It does some kind of work. 

Cells grow and work by means of the food and air 
which are taken into the body. Cells take lifeless 
water, protein, and minerals from food and build them 
into living flesh. 

Oxidation. — When cells do any kind of work, they 
use up both food and air. They join the oxygen (ok'si- 
jen) of the air to the food by a process, called oxida¬ 
tion, which is like a very slow burning in a fire. When 
the oxygen and wood are joined together, they become 
smoke and ashes. The oxidation of food and flesh 
warms the body and produces the power which drives 
the machinery of the body. The principal way by 
which the body is worn out during exercise is by the 
oxidation of its flesh and food. 

QUESTIONS 

What is an organ? 

What organs do you use when you do voluntary work? 

Name some organs which support the life of the body. 

What effect does the imperfect action of one organ, such as the 
stomach, have upon all the rest of the body? 

What are cells? 

Describe a paramecium. 

How is a cell of the human body like a paramecium ? 

Of what three substances is living matter composed ? 

What becomes of the oxygen which is taken into the body? 


ORGANS AND CELLS 


77 


For the Teacher. — The concept of the cell is the basis of modern biology 
and physiology, and is necessary in the study of the working of the inner 
parts of the body. 

Although the subject of cells will not be fully understood by many pupils, 
yet it should be given for the benefit of those who will pass into the upper 
grades and pursue the study further. 

Show the pupils typical specimens of cells under a microscope. It is nearly 
always possible to find a physician who will bring his microscope to the school 
and assist the teacher in demonstrating specimens. The paramecium is a 
typical one-celled animal that can readily be grown in a glass of hay-water. 
Typical human cells are those scraped from the skin. 

Life is supported by food and air. Make brief mention of the use of air 
in oxidizing or burning food in order to warm the body and give it strength. 

A comparison of oxidation in the body with that in a fire may be made as fol¬ 
lows: 

Wood + air (oxygen) = smoke + ashes. 

Food (or flesh) + oxygen = waste matters (excretions). 


CHAPTER X 


DIGESTION 

Organs of Digestion. — The body builds itself out 
of bread, milk, meat, potatoes, and other foods. After 
a food has been eaten, it must become a part of the 
blood before it can pass into the flesh or be used in 
doing the work of the body. In order to reach the 
blood, food is dissolved in some of the fluids of the 
body and changed to a form which can pass through the 
sides of the blood tubes and into the blood stream. 
Changing food to a form which can enter the blood is 
called digestion. 

Digestion takes place in a tube which extends from 
the mouth through the body. The three principal 
parts of the food tube are the mouth , the stomach , and 
the intestine. But the digestion of most kinds of food 
begins outside of the body when the foods are cooked. 

Cooking. — Three changes usually take place in 
food when it is cooked : 

1. It is cut up, stirred, mashed, and torn to pieces. 

2. It is dissolved in water or in some other liquid. 

3. The heat of cooking changes the food to sub¬ 
stances which have pleasant tastes and odors, and which 
may be easily used by the body. 

78 


DIGESTION 


79 



A Cooking Class 

Cooking is a useful subject to be taught in a public school. 

Mouth Digestion. — The digestive organs continue 
the softening and dissolving actions which were begun 
by cooking. The mouth is the first organ which re¬ 
ceives the food. It does three things to food : 

1. It pours a liquid, called sali'va , upon the food. 

2. Its teeth grind the food to small bits, and the 
tongue, lips, and cheeks stir the food about and mix 
it with saliva until it is a pasty mass. Chewing food 
well is a long step in the process of digestion, for small 
bits of food will dissolve much faster than large pieces. 

3. The saliva changes some of the food to forms 
which can enter the blood. 

Swallowing. — After a mouthful of food has been 
chewed, it is rolled into a lump by the tongue and 
cheeks and is sent backwards into a fleshy tube called 





8 o 


DIGESTION 


tbe esophagus (e-sof'a-gus), which carries the food 
down to the stomach. 

Stomach Digestion. — The stomach is the second 
principal part of the food tube. It is a bag holding 
one or two quarts. It lies in the front part of the 
body just above the line where the waistband of the 
clothes is usually worn. It digests food in much the 
same way as the mouth, as follows : 

1. It pours a liquid, called the gastric juice , over 
the food. 

2. It stirs and mixes the food, but much more slowly 
and gently than the mouth. 

3. The gastric juice dissolves some of the protein 
of the food, and changes it to a form which can pass into 
the blood. 

Every few moments the stomach lets a little of the 
partly dissolved food pass into the third part of the 
food tube, the intestine , or bowel. The stomach usually 
becomes empty in from three to four hours after a 
meal is eaten. 

Intestinal Digestion. — The intestine is a tube a 
little larger around than the thumb, and about five 
times as long as the height of the body- It lies in coils 
which fill the lower part of the body below the level 
of the waistband. It completes the work of diges¬ 
tion. 

The intestine, like the stomach and the mouth, has 
three actions upon the food : 


DIGESTION 


81 


1. It mixes the food with a liquid which comes from 
three sources, — the intestine itself, the pancreas 
(pan'kre-as), and the liver. 

2. It stirs and moves the food about. 

3. The liquids change the food to forms which can 
enter the blood. 

Glands. — The digestive juices seem to come from 
the inner surface of the digestive organs, like springs 
of water from the ground. When the tongue is raised, 
drops of saliva may be seen oozing from two openings 
just behind the middle front teeth. The saliva and 
other digestive juices are formed in organs called glands. 

A gland consists of a tube which extends from the 
surface into the flesh, and is lined with plump, rounded 
cells. The cells take material from the blood, manu¬ 
facture it into a digestive juice, and pour the completed 
juice into the open center of the tube. A nerve brings 
messages to the cells, telling them when the body has 
need for them to form the juices. 

The glands which produce the gastric juice and the 
intestinal juice are short and straight, and are scattered 
over the inner surface of the stomach and intestine. 
The glands which produce the saliva and the pan¬ 
creatic juices consist of long branched tubes which 
are packed together to form a mass of flesh. The 
liver is the largest gland in the body. One of its im¬ 
portant uses is to form a liquid called the bile. The 
bile flows into the intestine, and there helps to digest 
food. 


OV. PERS. HYG.-6 


82 


DIGESTION 


How Digested Food Reaches the Blood. -The inside 
of the intestine is covered with short, velvety threads 
of flesh called villi (vil'i). Blood flows near the sur¬ 
face of each villus and is separated 
from the food in the intestine by 
only a thin layer of living cells 
which cover the villus. The cells 
do not allow most substances to 
pass from the intestine into the 
blood, but they take up digested 
food, pass it through their bodies, 
and pour it into the blood stream 
which flows behind them. 

The blood carries the food 
through the whole body and gives 
it to the parts which need it. 

Muscles of the Food Tube. — 
One of the most important actions 
of the digestive organs is that of 
stirring the food about and caus¬ 
ing it to pass along down the food 
tube. The esophagus, stomach, 
a tube and are composed largely 
of muscles which produce motions in the food tube. 
When the muscles act, they contract in a ring which 
runs down the tube and squeezes the food onward, just 
as you squeeze tooth paste from its tube of tinfoil. 
The motions are rapid in the esophagus, slower in the 
stomach, and slowest of all in the intestine. Food 



Villi and Glands be¬ 
tween Them 


Villi are like tiny roots which 
take up digested food from 
the intestine. 


and intestine form 




DIGESTION 


83 


passes through the esophagus in a second or two, 
through the stomach in three or. four hours, and 
through the intestine in about a day. 

Waste Matters in the Intestine. — While the food is 
passing down the intestine, its digested parts enter 
the blood. When the food reaches the lower end of 
the intestine, most of the useful parts have been taken 
up and only the waste parts are left. These waste 
substances are of no further use to the body, but are 
often harmful. The last act of digestion is that of 
expelling the waste substances from the intestine. 

Bacteria grow in the food that lies in the intestine, 
and produce decay and fermentation, just as they do 
in food that lies in a warm, moist place outside of the 
body. When the waste substances lie in the intes¬ 
tine two or three days, they decay and ferment and 
become poisonous. Expelling the waste matters from 
the intestine at least once a day is necessary for health. 

The muscles which expel the waste matters from the 
intestine are partly under voluntary control, and may 
be trained to act at a regular time every day. The 
time which is usually most natural and convenient is 
just after breakfast. Going to the toilet every day 
just after breakfast trains the bowel to empty itself 
regularly at that hour. 

Bulky Food. — The intestine must be partly full in 
order that its muscles may push the food and waste 
matters down the food tube. If nearly all the food 
which is eaten is digested, that which is left will not 


84 


DIGESTION 


be pushed along the food tube, but will lie in the in¬ 
testine and become decayed and poisonous. One needs 
to eat some coarse foods, such as celery, turnips, and 
whole-wheat bread, in order that their unchanged 
parts may help to fill the intestine and push the waste 
matters down the food tube. 

Taste and Digestion. — The sight, smell, and taste 
of food that is pleasing cause the saliva to flow into 

the mouth, even before 
the food is tasted. They 
also cause the gastric 
juice to flow into the 
stomach, and the 
muscles of the food tube 
to act. Foods which 
look and taste good will 
be digested far more 
readily than those which 
are not pleasing. A 
pleasing taste and ap¬ 
pearance of food not 
only give pleasure, but 
also help the body to digest the food. 

Control over Digestion. — You have very little 
control over your food after you have swallowed it, for 
you cannot control your stomach and intestine as you 
can your mouth. But the way in which you eat will 
have a great effect on the amount of work which your 
stomach and intestine have to do to food. If, for ex- 



Ready for Supper 
Good table manners help digestion. 



DIGESTION 


85 


ample, the food is not well chewed, the stomach will 
have to do more than its share of work, and will often 
have aches and pains while it tries hard to digest the 
food. If you eat properly, you are not likely to have a 
single unpleasant feeling to show that your stomach 
and intestine are at work. 

Mealtimes. — The feeling of hunger tells you when 
your body is in need of food. If you eat as you should, 
you will be hungry at morning, noon, and night. Three 
meals a day are enough to satisfy the hunger of grown 
folks and older children, but small children may need 
one or two extra lunches. 

Eating between Meals. — The stomach needs to 
rest like any other part of the body. It becomes 
empty three or four hours after a meal is eaten, and 
then it needs a rest of at least an hour or two. If you 
eat between meals, the stomach will get little rest, 
and will become too tired to do its work well. 
Eating candy, or fruit, or ice cream between meals is 
as unhealthful as eating potatoes between meals. The 
only proper time to eat is at mealtimes. 

Fast Eating. — One of the most common faults of 
eating is that of taking food too fast. If you eat too 
fast, there will not be time for the saliva to mix with 
food and do its part of the work of digestion. You 
will not chew the food well, but will swallow it in lumps 
which the stomach and intestine cannot easily break 
up or dissolve. You will also be likely to eat more 
than you need. 


86 


DIGESTION 


Eat slowly, and take at least fifteen minutes for a 
meal. Take small bites of food, and chew each mouth¬ 
ful to a paste. Swallow each mouthful before you put 
another into your mouth. If you eat in this way, your 
food will digest quickly and readily. 

How Much to Eat. — Your feeling of hunger will tell 
you how much to eat as well as when you need food. 
Eat until you have satisfied your natural hunger. 
Then stop eating, and do not keep on eating merely 
for the sake of the taste of the food. 

If you eat all the potatoes, bread and butter, and 
other plain foods that you wish, and then leave the 
table, you will feel satisfied and comfortable. But 
after you have satisfied your hunger with plain food, 
you may still wish to eat pie, or ice cream, or other 
dessert, in order to enjoy its taste. Your desire for 
the dessert will then be a false hunger. 

You can usually tell a real hunger from a false one by 
eating a piece of bread and butter. If you do not 
enjoy the bread, your hunger is probably false, and 
you would be harmed by eating a dessert or any other 
kind of food. But if you really enjoy the bread, you 
are probably in real need of food, and may safely eat 
a dessert. 

If you wish to eat pie, or ice cream, or other dessert, 
take it at mealtimes, and eat it only when you are 
hungry. But if you are really hungry and are in need 
of food, you will prefer bread and butter to ice cream, 
or cake, or candy, or other dessert. 


DIGESTION 


87 



Table Manners. — The rules of good table man¬ 
ners are also good rules for eating in a healthful way. 
If you eat in the way that well-mannered persons do, 
you will come to the table with clean hands and faces, 


A Happy Meal 

Food does us the most good when it is taken slowly and with pleasure. 

and clean clothes. You will eat slowly and chew your 
food well. You will sip your drink instead of gulping 
it down in great swallows. Your food will then digest 
well, and will make you strong and healthy. 

QUESTIONS 

What is digestion f 

Name the organs of digestion. 

What effect does cooking have upon food ? 




88 


DIGESTION 


How does the mouth digest food ? 

How does the stomach digest food? 

How does the intestine digest food ? 

What is a gland ? 

Describe a gland which produces gastric juice. 

Describe a villus. 

How does digested food reach the blood? 

Describe the action of the muscles of the stomach and intestine. 
Give some reasons for using some bulky food which does not be¬ 
come digested. 

How does the good taste of food help digestion ? 

How should you eat in order that your food ma) r digest well? 

How can you tell how much to eat? 

What rules of good table manners are also good rules for health? 


For the Teacher. — This chapter is intended to give a broad, simple view 
of the processes of digestion. An aid in learning the details is to remember 
that there are three organs of digestion, and that three similar actions take 
place in each organ. 

The three processes of digestion are similar to those which take place in 
cooking. The stomach and intestine act on food in the same ways as the 
mouth does. 

Dwell briefly on the subject of glands for the benefit of the brighter members 
of the class (p. 81). 

An aid to the teacher is to remember that a person has voluntary control 
over only the first and the last acts of digestion, — eating, and the expulsion 
of wastes, — and that if these two acts are properly performed, digestion 
will go on properly in the stomach and intestine. 

The topics of when, how, and how much to eat are important details which 
may be explained and remembered by reference to the subject of gcod manners. 


CHAPTER XI 


FOOD 

Height and Weight. — A young person who is healthy 
and properly fed will gain steadily in both height and 
weight. The following table shows the average height 
and weight of children at each year of their age: 

Table of the Heights and Weights of an Average 
Healthy American Child at Each 
Birthday 

BOYS GIRLS 


Age 

Height 

Weight 

Height 

Weight 

Years 

Inches 

Pounds 

Inches 

Pounds 

1 

29 

21 

28.5 

19-5 

2 

33-5 

26.5 

33 

25 

3 

36.5 

30.5 

36 

29-5 

4 

39 

34 

38.5 

33 

5 

41-5 

38 

4i 

37 

6 

44 

4i 

43-5 

40 

7 

45-5 

49 

45-5 

47 

8 

47-5 

54 

47-5 

52 

9 

49-5 

59 

49 

57 

10 

5i-5 

65 

5i 

62 

11 

S 3 

70 

53 

68 

12 

55 

77 

56 

78 

13 

57 

85 

58 

89 

14 

60 

95 

60 

98 

15 

62 

107 

61 

106 

16 

65 

121 

61.5 

112 


89 


go 


FOOD 



A person whose weight and height are as great as 
those belonging to his age is said to be well nourished. 
If a person is short, but has the proper weight that goes 
with the height, that person also is well nourished. 

If a ten-year-old boy is 
47.5 inches tall, he has 
the height of an eight- 
year-old boy; but if his 
weight is 54 pounds or 
more, he is well nour¬ 
ished. He may be short 
because his parents are 
short. 

Height and weight are 
good indicators of a per¬ 
son’s health. Lack of 
weight shows that the 
body is not making good 
use of its food. If a body 
is under weight, the 
muscles usually lack 
strength, and the mind 

measured regularly and the light-weight cannot rfo good WO rk. 
pupils are taught what to do in order to 0 

grow naturally. What is called laziness 

and dullness may be caused by poor nourishment and 
lack of strength. 

When a doctor makes a complete examination of a 
person, one of the first things which he does is to 
measure the height and weight. If the weight is too 


Weighing and Measuring a Pupil 
In many schools the pupils are weighed and 






FOOD 


little, -the lightness is usually due to one of three 
causes: 

1. A sickness, or a disease, or a defect. 

2. Overwork or lack of rest. 

3. Wrong food or improper eating. 

Diseases and Defects. — Common forms of disease 
and defects are enlarged glands, tuberculosis, decayed 
teeth,, adenoids, and tonsils which are large and dis¬ 
eased. These conditions may not give pain or feelings 
of sickness, and yet may cause a person to be thin and 
weak. Pain may be a good thing if it drives a person 
to take treatment for a disease or defect. A thin 
person who has a serious disease or defect must be 
cured before natural growth can take place. 

Rest and Nourishment. — A person who works too 
hard, or does not get enough rest, uses up his food before 
it can be built into flesh. Some of the conditions 
which keep children thin and poorly nourished are: 
going to parties often; going to moving pictures at 
night; and sitting up late. A proper amount of rest 
is necessary for good nourishment. 

Food and Nourishment. — Proper food is always 
necessary in order that a person may grow naturally, 
and be well nourished. There are two important 
things which one must know about food in order to 
grow naturally and become strong : 

1. How to eat (pp. 85 and 86). 

2. What to eat. 


92 


FOOD 


Classes of Foods. — Any substance which can 
become a living part of the body or be used in doing its 
work, is called a food. 

Foods are divided into two principal classes: 

1. Flesh-forming foods, or those which can become 
living flesh. 

2. Fuel foods, or those which are oxidized in order 
to warm the body and produce power for doing work 
(p. 76). 

Flesh-forming Foods. — The body builds itself out 
of the water, minerals, and protein which are in its 
food (p. 75). Any food which contains them is called 
a flesh-forming food. The body needs some flesh¬ 
forming foods every day in order to grow and to repair 
its worn-out parts. 

The principal flesh-forming foods are milk, meat, 
and foods made from grain. All these foods contain 
minerals and protein. 

Fuel Foods. — The greater part of the food that is 
eaten is fuel food, and is burned in the body to produce 
heat and power. There are three principal substances 
which the body uses as fuel: 

1. Fat. 

2. Sugar. 

3. Starch. 

Nearly all the fat that is eaten is soon burned in the 
body like coal in the boiler of a steam engine. The fat 
. which is in the body is that which cannot be burned at 


FOOD 


93 


once, but is stored in pockets of flesh to be used during 
sickness or at other times when the body cannot take 
food. 

The principal foods that contain fat are meat and 
milk. Butter is the fat of milk. Fat is also found in 
a few kinds of vegetable foods, such as nuts, cocoa, 
and peanuts. But the body cannot use vegetable fat 
so well as it can animal fat. 

Nearly all the sugar that is eaten is quickly burned 
in the body. Some may be stored in the body for a 
short time, like fat, but there is very little sugar in 
the body at any one time. 

Starch is very much like sugar and must be changed 
to sugar before the body can use it. 

Either sugar or starch is found in nearly all kinds 
of grains, vegetables, and fruit. Grains and vegetables 
contain a great deal of starch. 

Vitamins. — The body needs a small amount of 
substances, called vi'tamins, which help it to use 
its other food substances. If a child does not eat food 
substances containing vitamins, it grows slowly, is thin 
and weak, and acts as if it were tired and sad. It is 
necessary that a child eat plenty of foods contain¬ 
ing vitamins, in order to grow and be bright and 
active. 

There are two great sources of vitamins: 

1. Milk, and foods made from milk, such as butter 
and cheese. 

2. Vegetables and fruits that are eaten raw. 


94 


FOOD 


Foods which contain few vitamins are : 

1. Cereals made from fine white flour. 

2. Lean meat. 

3. Potatoes and other vegetables as they are often 
cooked. 

A person who lives on cereals, lean meat, and pota¬ 
toes alone will be poorly nourished, and weak or 
sickly, because these foods lack vitamins. But these 
foods are wholesome and nourishing when milk and sal¬ 
ads or raw fruit are eaten with them in order to supply 
the missing vitamins. 

Foods for Bulk. — The body needs some food 
materials which do not become either flesh or fuel, but 
which help to fill the food tube and to carry other sub¬ 
stances down the tube. Examples of these materials 
are the coarse, stringy parts of celery and turnips, and 
the bran in whole-wheat flour (p. 84). 

Foods for Taste. — Substances are often added to a 
food in order to give it a pleasant taste. Examples 
of substances which are eaten on account of their 
taste are pepper, mustard, vinegar, spices, and sugar. 
Flavoring substances are needed because the body does 
not make good use of its food unless the food has a 
pleasant taste (p. 84). The chief value of some foods, 
such as pickles, is in their taste. 

Food Groups. — All the food substances which the 
body needs are found in four groups of foods, which may 
be bought in the markets. These groups are as follows : 


FOOD 


95 


i. Animal foods, such as milk, eggs, meat, and fish. 
These supply flesh-forming substances and vitamins. 







(c't 

1. Foods taken from animals 

2 . Cereals 




3. Fleshy vegetables 

4. Green vegetables and fruit 


The Four Food Groups 

In the course of a day, eat at least one food from each group. Be sure to choose 
milk every day. 


2. Cereals, or foods made from grain, such as bread, 
oatmeal, corn-meal muffins, and crackers. These sup¬ 
ply fuel substances and also flesh-forming material. 
When they are made from the whole kernels of grain, 
they supply vitamins. 

3. Fleshy vegetables, such as potatoes, peas, beans, 
and beets. These foods are both fuel and flesh formers. 
They also contain some vitamins. 

4. Leafy vegetables and fruit. These supply bulk, 
minerals, and vitamins. Examples of leafy vegetables 









96 


FOOD 


are lettuce, celery, spinach, and cabbage. Examples 
of fruit are oranges, apples, tomatoes, and berries. 

Remember these four groups of food, for you will 
need to eat something from each of them every day. 

Food Lists. — If you had to get the meals for a 
family for a day, what foods should you choose? 
Choose something from each of the four food groups. 
You could skip some of the groups in any one meal, 
but in the course of the day you should take some¬ 
thing from each group. 

Here is a list of wholesome foods which might be 
chosen for the meals for one day: 


Breakfast Noon Meal 


Supper 


Bananas 
Oatmeal 
Boiled eggs 
Bread rolls 
Butter 
Milk 


Bean soup 

Broiled codfish 

Mashed potatoes 

Bread 

Butter 

Custard 

Milk 


Beef stew 
Bread 
Butter 
Sponge cake 
Lettuce salad 
Milk 


Water, or a drink made mostly of water, should 
be used with each meal. 

The foods on this list are chosen from all the four 
groups of foods, and they contain all the kinds of food 
substances which the body needs. They also have a 
pleasant taste. A person must use them or foods like 
them every day in order to be strong and healthy. 


FOOD 


97 


Lunches Away from Home. — When you take a 
lunch to your work or on a picnic, choose the foods in 
the same way that you would for a meal at your home 
table. Your body 
would find it hard 
to make use of a 
lunch of such things 
as cake, pickles, 
candy, and soda 
water, for these are 
eaten principally for 
their taste. A good 
lunch is one of sand- 

wicheS made of When you go away from home, take a lunch of 
simple foods, such plain, wholesome food. 

as crackers and cheese, or bread and butter with jelly 
or lettuce. To these you can add a hard-boiled egg, 
fruit, and plain cake. 

Milk. — Milk is one of the most important of all 
foods for children, for it contains flesh-forming and 
fuel substances, and also minerals and vitamins, which 
promote growth. Growing children need some form 
of animal food, — either milk, or eggs, or meat, or 
fish. Milk is the best form of animal food, and it is 
also the cheapest. If milk is used, very little other 
animal food is needed. Every child who is under¬ 
nourished needs a glass of good milk at every meal. 

Salads. — Green vegetables and fresh fruits supply 
nearly the same kinds of vitamins and minerals as 



A Good Lunch 


ov. pers. hyg. — 7 




9 8 


FOOD 


milk; and in addition they are bulky foods which as¬ 
sist the muscles of the intestine in their work (p. 83). 
Salads made from green vegetables and fruits are tasty 
foods, and are needed by every person every day. 

Lack of a Food Group. — A person who omits the 
foods from any of the four groups that are given on 
page 95 will seldom grow naturally, or be strong in 
body or mind. A common error in choosing food is 
that of leaving out the foods of one of the groups. 
Some children do not like vegetables, and others do 
not like milk. Among the first questions that are 
asked about a thin, under-nourished child are what 
foods the child eats, and what it refuses to eat. 

Lack of raw, fresh foods of the vegetable and fruit 
groups for some weeks produces a disease called scurvy. 
This disease was once common among sailors on long 
voyages while they could not get fresh vegetables; 
but fresh vegetables or fruit would quickly cure it. 
A mild form of scurvy often causes pains in young 
children who eat no fresh vegetables or raw fruit. 

Desserts and Sweets. — A common error in the 
choice of foods is that of eating too much sugar. 
Candy, ice cream, soda water, and desserts contain 
a great deal of sugar. A person who eats a great deal 
of them takes more sugar than the body can use. 
When these substances are eaten between meals, the 
stomach is overworked, and the appetite for a meal is 
spoiled. An under-nourished child will not grow large 
and strong if sweets are eaten in place of plain nourish- 


FOOD 


99 


ing food. Sweets are good foods when they are eaten 
at mealtimes while a person is hungry; but they are 
harmful when they are eaten between meals or after 
a full meal of other foods has been eaten. 

QUESTIONS 

Is your weight what it should be for your height and age ? 

What are the three principal causes of light weight? 

Give a definition of food. 

Of what uses are foods to the body? 

Name some flesh-forming foods. 

Name some fuel foods. 

What becomes of the protein in foods? of the sugar and starch? 
of the fats? of the minerals? 

What are vitamins? In what foods are they found? 

Name the four principal groups of foods. 

Make a list of foods for a day’s meals which will contain all the 
food substances which the body needs. 

Make a list of foods for a lunch away from home. 

What substances in milk make it one of the best of all foods for 
children ? 

What valuable food substances are in salads? 

What is scurvy? 

What harm comes from eating too much cf desserts and sweets? 


For the Teacher. — Normal growth is the best indication and test of good 
nutrition. The table of heights and weights is a reliable standard for judging 
the state of nutrition in the majority of children. The school nurse and the 
medical examiner are expected to weigh and measure the children, and advise 
and assist those who are poorly nourished. 

The pupils should know and understand the three principal causes of under¬ 
nourishment, and make a special study of food in relation to growth and vigor. 

The brighter children will remember the classification of foods and the 
elementary food substances, but all pupils should remember the four food 
groups, for every one of the groups must be represented in the daily bill of fare 
of a well-nourished person.. Emphasize the importance of knowing the four 
food groups by having all pupils write out what they ate for a day. See if 
each pupil ate something chosen from each group. 


CHAPTER XII 


CARE OF FOOD 

Wholesome Food. — Most common foods are nearly 
always wholesome while they are fresh, but they 
often become unwholesome after they have been 
handled or kept for some time. The two principal 
causes which make food unwholesome are: 

1. Decay. 

2. Handling by diseased persons. 

Decayed Food. — Most kinds of food are likely to 
become spoiled, or sour, or decayed, unless they receive 
proper care. The principal causes of the spoiling and 
souring are bacteria and molds growing in the food 
(p. 16). Bacteria and molds produce unpleasant 
odors and tastes, and may make the food poisonous. 
Food that has become decayed or sour is unfit for 
use. One of the great objects in caring for food is 
to keep it free from molds and bacteria. 

There are four principal means of preventing molds 
and bacteria from growing in food : 

1. The heat of cooking. 

2. Coldness. 

3. Dryness. 

4. Cleanliness. 


100 


CARE OF FOOD 


IOI 


Heating Foods. — Boiling a food kills the molds 
and bacteria that are in it. If meat, fish, and other 
foods that easily decay are cooked, they keep fresh 
longer than those which are raw. One way to keep 
food wholesome is to cook it soon after it is bought. 

Canning Food. — Food is kept fresh in air-tight 
cans for months and years. In a common way of can- 



Canned Foods 

These foods keep wholesome because the molds and bacteria in them have been 
killed by heat, and they have been sealed in cans which no new molds and bacteria 
can enter. 

ning, the food is first boiled so that the bacteria and 
molds in it are killed. It is then placed in cans which 
have also been boiled, and the cans are sealed air¬ 
tight. Vegetables, fruit, and meat which have been 
properly canned will keep fresh for months and 
years, because molds and bacteria cannot reach them. 
But after a can is opened, the food spoils quickly, 
because molds and bacteria may then enter it. 




102 


CARE OF FOOD 


Coldness. - Most kinds of molds and bacteria grow 
very slowly when they are kept cold; but they grow 
rapidly at the temperature of the air on a warm summer 
day. Coldness is one of the best means of keeping food 
fresh. You can keep food cold by placing it in an ice 
box, or in a cellar, or in a spring or well of water. If 
you have none of these things, you can store the food 
in the coolest part of the house. 

Foods in large markets are kept for weeks or months 
in refrigerators, or in cold-storage rooms in which the 
temperature is kept nearly freezing, or even below 
freezing. 

Dryness. — Molds and bacteria cannot grow without 
water, and so they grow best in places which are damp. 
In dry places and in foods which are kept dry, they 
grow very slowly, if at all. 

Some kinds of food which decay or spoil quickly 
will keep fresh and wholesome for a long time if the 
water in them is taken away. Apples, prunes, and 
raisin grapes are preserved by drying. Even dried 
eggs and milk may be bought in the markets, and will 
remain fresh and wholesome for months if they are 
stored in a dry place. 

Cleanliness. — The molds and bacteria which make 
food spoil are spread by means of dirt and dust. Clean 
food keeps fresh for a long time, but dirty food soon 
spoils. A food and everything which touches it must 
be kept clean if the food is to remain fresh and whole¬ 
some. Cleanliness of the kitchen, dining room, and 


CARE OF FOOD 


103 



pantry is more important than that of any other room 
in the house; but most important of all is cleanliness 
of the dishes in which food is put. 

Washing Dishes. — Washing dishes is one of the 
most important things to be done in good housekeeping. 
Bits of food left in 
a dish may decay, 
and bacteria in a 
dirty dish may pro¬ 
duce decay in food 
which is afterward 
put into the dish. 

A dirty dish may 
contain disease 
germs which have 
come from the 
mouth of a diseased 
person. 

When you wash 
dishes, you must 
have the water boil¬ 
ing hot in order to 
kill the disease germs 
and the bacteria of decay. Wash the dishes first in a 
pan of hot soapsuds, and then rinse them in clean 
boiling water in order to remove the drops of dirty 
water which cling to them, and to kill the bacteria in 
them. Be sure to have the dish cloths and the towels 
clean. 


Washing Dishes 

Use plenty of boiling water in order to kill disease 
germs which may be left on the dishes. 






104 


CARE OF FOOD 


House Flies and Food. — House flies come from 
filthy places into kitchens and dining rooms, and 
sprinkle food with dirt and disease germs. A food 
over which flies have crawled is unwholesome. There 
are three principal means of keeping flies away from 
food: 

1. Driving them out of the house. 

2. Screening the windows and doors and covering 
the food. 

3. Cleanliness. 

Flies come into the kitchens and dining rooms be-' 
cause they are hungry and thirsty. They find their 
food by their sense of smell, and they like that which 
is decayed or sour. If a kitchen or dining room is kept 
clean, and the food covered, there will be nothing for 
flies to eat, and no strong odors of decaying substances 
to attract them to the room. 

Disease Germs in Food. — Persons are sometimes 
made sick by eating unwholesome food. Sickness 
caused by food is of two kinds: 

1. That caused by food which is decayed or spoiled. 

2. That caused by disease germs. 

Disease germs can grow in the body, and so they are 
far more dangerous than the bacteria of decay, which 
cannot grow in the living flesh of the body. Disease 
germs come from persons; but they are sometimes 
found in food because persons who are sick, or diseased, 


CARE OF FOOD 


105 

or dirty handle the food and leave some of their disease 
germs upon it. 

There are two principal means of spreading disease 
germs to food: 

1. Dirty hands which touch the food. 

2. Coughing or sneezing over the food. 

Food may contain disease germs when it is handled 
by persons who have a cold, or sore throat, or other 
disease which is catching. In many hotels and camps, 
those who handle food are examined so that the sick 
or diseased workers may be found and kept out of the 
kitchens and dining rooms. The heat of cooking 
will kill most disease germs that may get into food. 
Cooked food is nearly always safer than that which 
is raw; but cooked food may be made unwholesome if 
it is handled by a diseased person. If a food is to be 
eaten raw, wash it well before it is eaten or prepared 
for the table. 

Milk. — Milk that is pure and fresh is one of the 
best of all foods. Babies must have it in order to grow 
fast and be healthy, but they are easily made sick by 
milk which is sour or spoiled. 

The milk of a healthy cow is nearly always whole¬ 
some when it is first drawn. Its souring and spoiling 
are caused by bacteria which enter the milk with dirt. 
The three principal means of keeping milk pure and 
fresh are: 

1. Cleanliness. 2. Cold. 3. Pasteurization. 


io6 


CARE OF FOOD 



Wholesome Milk is Clean 
The cows, the stables, and the milkers must be clean. 


Cleanliness of Milk. — If dirt can be seen in the 
bottom of a pitcher or bottle of milk, that milk will 
contain many bacteria and will not keep fresh and 



Wholesome Milk is Kept in Clean- 
Containers 

The pails, bottles, and pitchers in which 
milk is put must be clean, 



Wholesome Milk is Kept 
Cold 

Keep the milk in an ice box or in some 
other cold place, 











CARE OF FOOD 


107 


sweet, and will not be fit for babies or young children. 
In order to have pure, fresh milk, there must be clean¬ 
liness of the cows and stables, and of the hands of the 
milkmen; but most of all, the pails, cans, and bottles 
into which milk is put must be kept clean. Bits of 
milk left in a pail or bottle will decay and produce 
unpleasant odors. Cover a milk pail or bottle for a few 
moments and then uncover it and smell of the inside. 
If it has an unpleasant odor, milk put into it will have 
the same odor and taste, because the bacteria of decay 
which cause the odor will grow through all the milk. 

Coldness of Milk. — It is important to keep milk 
cold in order to prevent bacteria from growing in it. 
Keep milk in the coldest part of an ice box or other 
cold place. 

Disease Germs and Milk. — A person who has a cold 
or other infectious disease is likely to leave disease 
germs in the milk which he handles. The laws of 
many cities and states do not allow persons who are 
sick to handle milk. 

Pasteurized Milk. — If milk is heated nearly boiling 
hot, the bacteria and disease germs that may be in it 
are killed. Preparing milk by heating it to 145 0 F. 
for thirty minutes is called pasteurizing (pas'ter-Iz-ing) 
it. If milk is cooled quickly after pasteurization and 
is kept cool, it will keep sweet and wholesome for days. 
Pasteurized milk is the safest milk on the market. 

Milk can easily be pasteurized at home. Place a 
bottle of milk in a pan of water and heat the water 


io8 


CARE OF FOOD 


until it is almost boiling. Let the milk bottle stand 
in the water for half an hour, and then remove it and 
cool it quickly. Pasteurized milk is usually the only 
safe milk for babies. 


QUESTIONS 

What two principal causes make food unwholesome? 

What is the cause of decay in food ? 

How may molds and bacteria be prevented from growing in food ? 
How is food canned? 

Why should food be stored in a cold place? 

Why does dryness keep food from spoiling? 

Why does cleanliness help to keep food fresh and wholesome? 

Give some reasons for washing dishes. 

Why should hot water be used in washing dishes? 

What harm may house flies do to food? 

Where do disease germs in unwholesome food usually come from? 
How may dirty hands make food unwholesome? 

What are the three principal means of keeping milk pure and fresh ? 
How does cleanliness help to keep milk fresh and wholesome ? 

How does coldness help to preserve milk? 

Why should a person who has a cold not handle milk? 

How is milk pasteurized ? 

Why is pasteurized milk usually a safe milk for babies? 

For the Teacher. — All the topics in this chapter are important; but the 
most important of all is the danger of food being infected by sick persons or carriers 
who handle the food. Call particular attention to the sickness that may result 
when food is handled by any person who has what seems to be only a mild 
cold, or sore throat, or intestinal disturbance. Many epidemics of diphtheria, 
scarlet fever, and typhoid fever have been caused by food handlers who were 
only mildly sick. 

Other topics to be emphasized are: 

1. The value of cleanliness, coldness, and dryness in keeping food fresh. 

2. The need of boiling hot water in washing dishes. 

3. The danger from house flies on food. 

4. The need of cleanliness and coldness in the care of milk. 

5. The value of the pasteurization of milk. 


CHAPTER XIII 


DRINKS 

Water as a Food. — Water has two principal uses 
in the body: 

1. It is a food. 

2. It carries waste matter away from the body. 

The body contains about three times as much water 
as solid substance. Water is always passing off from 
the body, and in a day a grown person gives off about 
three quarts. He must therefore swallow about three 
quarts of water each day in order to replace that which 
is lost. Water is the most necessary food that the body 
takes. The body can live for only a few days with¬ 
out water, but it can go without other food for two 
or three weeks. 

Water and Waste Substances. — The water which 
leaves the body carries away its waste matters. When 
food and living flesh are oxidized in the body, they 
become changed to substances which are like the 
smoke and ashes of a fire (p. 76). They are then no 
longer useful, but are waste substances which are car¬ 
ried away by the blood. The substances which are 
like smoke are carried to the lungs and are given off 
with the breath. Those which are like ashes are 
109 


no 


DRINKS 


carried to the skin, kidneys, liver, and intestine, and 
are given off by those organs (p. 71). 

The waste substances that are contained in the 
perspiration consist largely of minerals, which make 
it salty. 

The kidneys are two glands which lie in the back of 
the body beside the lowest ribs. Their cells are 
arranged in long tubes which are folded and coiled to 
form two masses of red flesh. In a grown person 
they remove about three pints of water from the body 
every day. The other three pints which leave the 
body are given off with the perspiration and the 
breath. 

Amount of Water Needed Daily. — A grown person 
needs to take about three quarts of water each day in 
order to wash away the waste matters from the body. 
If less than this quantity is taken, the skin and kidneys 
cannot remove the waste matters readily, and the body 
will be poisoned with its own worn-out substances. 
But if the proper quantity of water is taken, the skin 
and kidneys will easily carry the waste matters from 
the body. About half of the water which the body 
receives is contained in food, and the other half is 
taken in the form of plain water or other drinks. 

When to Drink. — It is usually safe to drink pure, 
cool water whenever there is a feeling of thirst. Water 
can be taken as safely with a meal as at any other 
time. But a person who is in a hurry sometimes swal¬ 
lows water so as to wash the food down his throat 


DRINKS 


hi 


quickly. This use of water is wrong. If you eat 
slowly, you may safely drink enough water to satisfy 
your thirst. 

It was formerly thought that persons sick with a 
fever should not drink water. This was a great 
mistake. Cold water cools the sick person’s body and 
helps to carry away the poisons of the sickness. A 
sick person will seldom be harmed by drinking all the 
water that he wants, if he takes it slowly. 

Ice Water. — When water is pleasantly cool, it is 
more healthful than when it is either hot or very cold. 
Hot drinks and those which are ice cold are both 
unhealthful when they are swallowed quickly and in 
large quantities. If a person is thirsty and drinks 
quickly, he is likely to swallow three or four glasses 
of ice water before he is satisfied, because he does not 
wait for the water to pass into the blood. If a glass 
of pure, cold water is taken in sips, it is not likely to 
be harmful at any time. 

Coffee and Tea. — Coffee and tea satisfy thirst 
because they are mostly water. They contain sub¬ 
stances which are likely to make a person restless 
and wakeful, and so they are not proper drinks for 
children. They drive the body to action, but do not 
supply it with power or new flesh. A grown person 
who is compelled to work long hours may be helped 
sometimes by coffee and tea, but children will be 
harmed by them or anything else which drives the 
body to action. 


112 


DRINKS 


Under-nourished children need rest and nourishing 
food. Coffee prevents them from resting, and so 
prevents their bodies from building flesh out of their 
food. A breakfast of coffee and bread makes a poor 
beginning for a day’s work. A glass of milk or a cup 
of cocoa made with milk is much better than coffee or 
tea. 

Milk. — Milk is both a food and a drink. Some 
persons seem to think that milk is a food for babies 
only, and that for grown persons it is only a drink like 
tea or coffee. Milk is a valuable food for both grown 
persons and children. A glass of milk contains as 
much food as a small helping of beefsteak or a good- 
sized slice of bread. Milk also contains vitamins 
which promote growth, and minerals which are needed 
in order to form sound teeth and firm bone. Every 
poorly nourished child needs a glass of milk with 
every meal. 

Soda Water. — Plain soda water which is sold from 
soda-water fountains is water which is bubbling full 
of carbonic acid gas, and is a harmless and refreshing 
drink. When the water is flavored with sirups, or ice 
cream, or fruit juices, it becomes a food like anything 
else that contains sugar, fat, and other food sub¬ 
stances. Taking soda water between meals is as 
harmful as eating sweets between meals. 

Lemonade, ginger ale, and sarsaparilla contain sugar, 
and when they are taken between meals, they are as 
harmful as other sweets (p. 98). 


DRINKS 


n 3 


Public Drinking Cups. — In schools and railroad 
cars, and at drinking fountains, where several persons 
drink from the same cup, persons who have a cold, or 
tuberculosis, or other infectious disease, often leave 
germs of their disease on the cup. Any one who 
drinks from a public 
cup is liable to take 
disease germs which an 
unhealthy person has 
left on the cup. It is 
no more safe to drink 
from a public cup than 
it is to eat from un¬ 
washed dishes which 
other persons have used. 

Some states and cities 
have laws that drink¬ 
ing cups which are to 
be used more than 
once without washing 
shall not be placed in schools, railroad cars, or other 
public places. 

Bring your own cup to school and do not lend it to 
any one, or borrow a cup from any one else. When 
you travel, take your own cup with you so that you 
will not need to drink from a public cup. If you 
must drink from a public cup, do not take the rim of 
the cup between your lips, but drink by touching both 
lips to the water just inside the rim. Paper drinking 

OV. PERS. HYG.—8 



A Safe Way to Drink 
If you must drink from a cup which some one 
else has used, place both lips inside the rim. 






DRINKS 


114 


cups are now man¬ 
ufactured, and 
sold cheap to be 
used in place of 
metal cups. Each 
paper cup is to be 
used once and 
then thrown away. 

Paper cups, 
dishes, and spoons 
are also sold for 
use at soda-water fountains and ice-cream parlors. 
These are much more healthful 
than cups and spoons which are 
washed in cold water in a quick, 
careless way. 

Drinking Fountains. — Schools 
and railroad stations often have 
public drinking fountains in which 
a stream of running water bubbles 
up in a little column or jet. A 
drink is taken by putting the lips 
to the stream. If the stream of 
water bubbles directly upward, 
saliva from the drinker’s mouth 
may fall upon the fixture, and may 
be carried into the mouth of the A Sa fou^tain KING 
next person who drinks. A safe The water tube is at one 

- f . . . . r . side where it will not be 

form of drinking fountain is one soiled by the drinker. 









DRINKS 


ii5 

in which the stream of water spurts sidewise from a 
covered opening. A person drinks from the outer 
end of its stream, and saliva from the drinker’s mouth 
cannot fall upon the opening from which the water 
flows. 

QUESTIONS 

In what respect is water a food? 

How much water enters and leaves the body each day? 

What has water to do with ridding the body of waste matters ? 

What organs give off water and waste matters from the body? 

Of what use is water to a feverish person? 

How should ice water be drunk? 

Of what use are coffee and tea ? Why should children not use them ? 

In what respect is milk a valuable food as well as a drink ? 

What substances are in soda water? 

Why are public drinking cups harmful? 

If you have to drink from a public cup, how should you place your 
lips to the cup ? 

Give some reasons for using paper drinking cups. 

Describe a form of drinking fountain that is healthful. 

For the Teacher. — This chapter deals with the physiological effects of 
water. Emphasize the need of an abundance of water in the body. 

Made drinks consist of water, plus other substances. Show the harmfulness 
of tea and coffee to children, and the value of milk as a food as well as a drink. 

Explain the danger of contamination of public drinking cups and fountains 
with disease germs from the saliva of the drinker. Explain the kind of fountain 
which is safe. 

What kind of cups or fountains are used in your school? 


CHAPTER XIV 
PURE WATER 

Impurities in Water. — Impure drinking water is 
likely to cause sickness. Most of the water which 
is used in houses comes either from underground, or 
from rivers and lakes. It often contains mud, and 
bits of sticks and leaves. Most of these substances 
are harmless to the body, but if the water contains 
enough of them to give it an unpleasant odor or taste, 
or to make it muddy or cloudy, it is generally not fit 
for use. 

The most dangerous things that are found in drinking 
water are not those which can be smelled, or tasted, 
or seen with the naked eye. Most dangerous of all 
are the disease germs, which are too small to be seen 
without a microscope. Dirty water is very likely to 
have disease germs in it, but water that is clear and 
sparkling and has a pleasant taste may also contain 
disease germs, for they may be left in the water after 
the harmful impurities which can be seen and tasted 
have been taken out. 

Sewage. — The waste water and slops from kitchens, 
bathrooms, and laundries are called sewage (su'aj). 
Sewage often contains disease germs which have come 

116 


PURE WATER 



117 

from sick persons. Most disease germs which reach 
drinking water come from sewage, or from barnyards. 
The way to keep drinking water pure is to dispose of 
all slops and other sewage and barnyard drainings in 
such a way that they cannot reach the wells, or 


An Unsafe and Untidy Way of Getting Rid of Waste Water 

The drain pipe from a kitchen sink should be carried to some distance away from 
the house. 

springs, or streams from which drinking water is taken. 
Failure to do this has been the cause of a great deal 
of sickness. Typhoid fever has been spread to hun¬ 
dreds of persons in a city by the slops from a single 
farmhouse on the banks of the stream which supplied 
the city with water. 














nB 


PURE WATER 


Wells. - A well is a shaft or pipe sunk down to the 
underground water. Old-fashioned wells were large 
open holes lined with brick or stone. Dirty water 
from the house or barnyard often ran between the 



An Unsafe Well 

The water is impure because it contains drainage from the barnyard. 


joints, and worms and toads dropped through the 
cracks into the water. These old wells have been the 
cause of a great deal of sickness. A well is now usually 
made by driving a small iron pipe into the ground, 
and screwing a pump to its upper end. Nothing can 
fall into such a well, and no water can flow into it 
from the earth above the ground water. The water 
which is drawn from it will be pure if the underground 
water is pure. 





PURE WATER 


ii9 

Public Water Supply. — Wells may safely be used 
on a farm or in a small village, but the people of a 
large village or a city must go to a distance to get 
pure water, for in crowded parts of a town much 
sewage is thrown upon the ground and reaches the un¬ 
derground water. The supply of pure water is usually 
taken from a river or lake, and is brought to the 
houses by means of iron pipes laid underground in the 
streets. Most cities and large villages have public 
water supplies. 

Streams and Rivers. — The water from a river is 
usually safe for drinking if no slops or other sewage 
reaches it from towns along its course, or from persons 
living on its banks. But many cities and villages 
have to take their water from streams which contain 
sewage, and therefore it is often necessary to purify 
the water before it can be used safely. 

Filter. — One way of purifying water is by passing 
it through a filter. A common form of filter is a box 
filled with sand and small bits of charcoal. The sand 
and charcoal strain out impurities, and allow the pure 
water to pass through. 

A filter is of little value unless it is very large, and 
the water runs through it slowly. Small filters, to 
screw on kitchen faucets, have been manufactured, 
but they are of little use in taking disease germs from 
water. 

Cities sometimes purify their water by passing it 
through huge filters of sand. 


120 


PURE WATER 


Boiling Drinking Water. — Boiling impure water 
will usually make it safe for drinking. The boiling 
will not remove dirt or take away a bad taste, but 
the heat will kill the germs of disease that may be in 
the water. Long boiling spoils the taste of water 
by driving off the air that is dissolved in it. If the 
water is taken from the fire as soon as it begins to 
boil, the disease germs will be killed and yet the taste 
of the water will not be spoiled. 

Where water is impure, persons are sometimes 
told to drink tea or coffee instead of water. The 
tea or coffee is safer than water only because it has 
been boiled. 

If you are not sure of the purity of drinking water, 
drink only that which has been boiled. 

Ice. — Ice is sometimes taken or made from water 
which is not fit to drink, and is used in cooling drink¬ 
ing water and food. If there were disease germs in 
the water of a river or lake before it was frozen, the 
germs will be found in the ice, for freezing will not kill 
them. The ice may also contain disease germs which 
were left on it by workers or skaters, or by those who 
sell the ice or handle it. Before you put ice in your 
water or food, wash it, and be sure that it is as pure 
as pure drinking water should be. 

Purifying Sewage. — Underground water comes from 
rain which soaks through the soil. It is nearly always 
pure, because the soil is a great filter and removes 
impurities from the water which passes down through 


PURE WATER 


I 21 


it. The water of nearly every driven well, spring, 
river, and lake is therefore naturally free from disease 
germs, and would always be free from them if slops 
and other sewage were kept from it. Taking care of 
the sewage of a house is usually much easier and 
safer than purifying water after it has been made 
impure. 

A common way of getting rid of the waste water of 
a house in the country is to throw it out of doors upon 
the ground. If only a little dirty water is poured 
upon the land, it will sink into the soil and become 
pure by the time it reaches the underground water. 
The soil, acting as a filter, will strain out and destroy 
the impurities and disease germs. 

It will not do to empty a great deal of dirty water 
upon a small spot of ground, for soil that is soaking 
wet cannot purify the water. It will not be safe to 
allow the water from a kitchen sink to form a dirty 
puddle upon the ground. Catch the waste water from 
the kitchen in a pail, and empty it on the back yard, 
first on one place and then on another. Put only a 
little at a time on each place. If the ground is frozen, 
empty the slops on some spot from which they will 
not run into a well or stream when the ground begins 
to thaw. 

Cesspool. — Emptying slops and other sewage on the 
ground may be safe on farms and in small country 
places, but this will not be a safe thing to do if the 
houses are near together. One way of getting rid 


122 


PURE WATER 


of all kinds of sewage in small towns is to empty the 
waste water from each house into a large covered hole 
in the ground called a cesspool. The solid parts 
decay in the cesspool, and the water slowly sinks into 
the deeper parts of the soil. But it will not be safe to 
take drinking water from a well that is near the cess¬ 
pool. 

If a layer of rock or clay is just beneath a cesspool 
or other dumping place for slops or other sewage, 
impure water may flow along it and reach a well 
some distance away. The place for a cesspool is where 
both the surface of the ground and also the under¬ 
ground rock or clay slope away from the well or 
other place from which drinking water is taken. 



The Sewage Disposal Plant of a Small Village 

If the plant is properly run, it will have no unpleasant odor, and the outflow from 
it will be harmless. 


Sewage Disposal in Cities. — In cities the waste 
water is usually carried away in underground pipes 
called sewers. Many sewers empty into the nearest 
river, lake, or other body of water. But this makes the 
water impure and dangerous for drinking, washing, and 




PURE WATER 


123 


bathing. The people of the city of Albany, N. Y., 
have to spend large sums of money in purifying their 
water, because the Hudson River, from which the 
city water is taken, contains the sewage of the city of 
Troy, which is about ten miles above Albany. A 
better way to get rid of sewage is to purify it in 
sewage disposal works at public expense. 

QUESTIONS 

What are some of the common impurities in drinking water? 

What are the most dangerous impurities in impure water? 

What is sewage ? 

What harmful substances are found in sewage ? 

How do disease germs usually reach drinking water? 

Why is water from a driven well usually more healthful than water 
from an old-fashioned open well? 

What is a filter? 

How does a filter purify water ? 

Why does boiling impure water make it safe to drink ? 

How may ice which is used for cooling drinking water be the cause 
of disease? 

What purifies slops and other sewage when they are thrown upon 
the land ? 

What is a good way to dispose of the dirty water that flows from a 
kitchen sink? 

What is a cesspool? 

Why is it unhealthful for city sewers to empty into a river, lake, 
or other body of water? 

Give some reasons why the people of a city should purify their 
sewage. 

For the Teacher. — This chapter deals with pure water and sewage dis¬ 
posal. The principal sources of dangerous impurities in drinking water are 
sewage and outdoor toilets. 

In judging the purity of the water of a well or other source of supply, one 
should inspect it for three conditions: 

1. Is there any barnyard drainage, cesspool, toilet, or other dumping place 
for waste water near it ? 


124 


PURE WATER 


2. If the source is a well, is it covered or protected so that waste water 
or other harmful substances cannot fall into it? 

3. Does the water look clear, and does it have a pleasant smell and taste? 

Emphasize the necessity of boiling drinking water if one is not sure of its 
purity. 

Show how the soil acts as a filter and 
purifies dirty water which falls upon it. 
Place a lamp chimney upright in a pan, fill 
it three quarters full of garden soil, and 
pour muddy water into it until it is full. 
The water which runs from the chimney 
into the pan will be clear. 

The five common ways of getting rid 
of waste water from a household are: 

1. Throwing it upon the ground near 
the house. 

2. Collecting it in a pail or barrel which 
is emptied away from the house. 

3. Leading it away from the house in a 

long pipe, and changing the location of the 
Lamp Chimney Filter outer end [rom time to time . 

Muddy water is made clear in 4 Emptying it into a cesspool, 

passing through the soil in the filter. ; Taking it away in a sewer. 

Explain the need of care in each of these methods. 

What are the toilet arrangements at your school? Is its receptacle fly-tight? Is the 
toilet clean? Is it a model one for the community? 

An unclean, overflowing, tumble-down school toilet will give the pupils the impression that 
rules of hygiene are theoretical and are not to be applied in their town. If the toilet of your 
school is not a model one, make a complaint to the health officer of your district. 







CHAPTER XV 
STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 



What a Stimulant Is. — When we wish a horse to 
travel fast and far, we may give it plenty of oats and 
hay so that it will have strength to do its work; or 
we may beat it with 
a whip, and so com¬ 
pel the animal to 
use all its strength 

in a single journey. 0ne Kind of Stimulani 

An old Roman name The old Romans called a whip a stimulus. 

for a whip was stim'ulus , and so the name stimulant is 
given to anything which acts like a whip to the body. 

Coffee and tea are mild stimulants, for they act 
like whips. They may help to keep a person awake, 
and rouse the body to action, but they are not foods; 
therefore they add nothing to the strength of the 
body. A person who uses them to drive himself to 
action will wear out his body and make himself weak. 

Narcotics. — There is a class of substances, called 
narcot'ics , which soothe the body, ease pain, and 
produce sleep. They produce pleasant feelings be¬ 
cause they dull the mind and prevent it from having 
unpleasant feelings. A person who takes a narcotic 
is like one in a dream, when impossible things seem 


125 





126 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


real and foolish acts seem proper. A person who is 
bright and strong in mind controls his thoughts and 
acts, and does not allow himself to do foolish things. 
But the mind of one who takes a narcotic acts 
like a car running down hill with no brakes to 
stop it. 

Many stimulants are also narcotics, and give false 
feelings of strength, brightness, and happiness because 
they dull the brain so that the mind does not feel keenly 
or think clearly. If a stimulant takes away a tired 
feeling, a person thinks he is strong and fresh. If it 
takes away his pain, he feels as if he were well and 
sound. If it makes him forget a trouble or worry, he 
acts as if he were happy. 

Drug Habits. — Stimulants and narcotics belong to 
a class of substances called drugs , which are poisons 
to the body, and may easily cause death. Although 
a drug may cause pleasant feelings for a time, yet the 
person who takes it will feel its harmful effects after 
the drug has left the body. The person will then want 
more of the drug to soothe the unpleasant feelings pro¬ 
duced by the first dose. Drugs do not satisfy a person. 
The more one takes, the more one wants, and soon a 
person forms a habit of using a drug and becomes a 
slave to it. The drug also dulls the mind. He who 
uses it has no strength to stop its use even when he 
knows that it is doing him great harm. 

Excuses for Using Drugs. — One excuse for using 
drugs is to stop pain. They ease pain because they 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


127 


dull the mind to the painful feeling. Pain is a useful 
feeling, for it is a sign that the body is sick or injured, 
and it drives a person to seek a cure. But a drug does 
not remove the cause of the pain. It only hides the 
pain, and leaves the person in as much danger as ever. 

Another excuse for taking a drug is to produce 
sleep. But the sleep produced by a drug is not natu¬ 
ral, and the person who takes the drug feels worse 
upon waking. 

A physician is the only person who can give a drug 
safely, and when he has given it, he still watches 
the sick person in order to remove the cause of the 
sickness. 

Alcoholic Drinks. — Alcohol is a liquid which is often 
used as a stimulant and narcotic. It is seldom taken 
pure, for it has a peppery, burning taste; but it is 
mixed with water and flavors in such drinks as wine, 
beer, and whisky. Drinks which contain alcohol 
are often called strong drinks, while those which con¬ 
tain no alcohol are called soft drinks. All strong 
drinks are stimulants and narcotics, and are harmful 
to the body. 

The first kind of strong drink which men used was 
made by squeezing the juice from grapes or other fruit 
and letting it stand until it was partly spoiled. By 
the change called fermentation , some of the sugar of 
the fruit juice was changed to alcohol. 

Fresh grape juice is a food. When it is first made, 
it is as wholesome and as harmless as the grapes 


128 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


themselves; but after it has stood for a few days, unless 
it is properly canned, it ferments and its sugar be¬ 
comes alcohol. The juice is then no longer a food, 
but a harmful stimulant and narcotic. This fer¬ 
mented juice is called wine. 

Another form of strong drink is beer, which is made 
from hops and grain which has sprouted. It contains 
alcohol and is harmful to the body, like other alcoholic 
drinks. 

Yeast. — The change of sugar to alcohol is made by 
microscopic plants called yeast. These plants may 

live after they are 
dried, and they often 
float in the air as 
dust. Fruit juice or 
other mixture contain¬ 
ing sugar can seldom 
stand for many hours 

(Magnified plants need with ° Ut havin g y eaSt 

sugar. As they grow, they change the sugar plants fall into it from 
to alcohol and a gas. . , 

the air. The yeast 
plants grow and change the sugar to alcohol and a gas. 
The gas bubbles up and makes the liquid appear as 
if it were boiling. 

Yeast in Bread. — Yeast is used in making bread. 
A yeast cake consists of dried yeast plants, mixed with 
flour or meal. Bread dough is a mixture of flour, 
water, and yeast. The yeast plants grow rapidly, 
and in a few hours they produce a large quantity of 





STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


129 


gas which puffs up the dough until it is full of holes 
like a sponge. When the dough is baked, it becomes 
so firm that the gas holes keep their shape. A good 
loaf of bread is full of holes, and sounds hollow when 
it is tapped with the fingers. 

The yeast plants in a lump of dough also form al¬ 
cohol, but all the alcohol is driven away by the heat of 
baking. 

Most yeast cakes contain many bacteria, but these 
usually grow more slowly than the yeast. If the bread 
dough is either too warm or too cold, the yeast may 
grow slowly, and the bacteria may grow rapidly and 
produce sour substances. The bread wall then be 
sour. 

Vinegar. — Fruit juice often becomes sour after it 
has stood for some days. The souring is caused by 
bacteria which grow in the juice with yeast plants. 
The bacteria change the alcohol of the juice to a sour 
substance, and the liquid is then called vinegar. The 
word vinegar comes from two French words, meaning 
sour wine. Vinegar is used as a flavoring for foods, 
such as pickles and salad dressings. 

Alcohol. — Alcohol is a liquid which looks like water. 
It is formed in any fermenting mixture of water and 
sugar, and may be separated from the greater part of 
the water by a process called distilla'tion. This consists 
of boiling the mixture, collecting the steam, and cooling 
it to a liquid. 

Alcohol will dissolve many things which water will 


OV. PERS. HYG .—9 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


130 

not dissolve, and so it is largely used in manufacturing. 
It will burn with a hot flame, without smoke or soot, 
and so is often burned in lamps and stoves. It may 
be used in engines in place of gasoline. It will keep 
decaying things from rotting, and is largely used to 
preserve substances. Alcohol has valuable uses, but it 
is put to a wrong use when it is taken in strong drink. 

Danger from Strong Drink. — Any drink containing 
alcohol is a dangerous stimulant and narcotic. It 
injures the stomach, the liver, the lungs, the muscles, 
and all the other organs of the body. Worst of all, it 
injures the brain and dulls the mind. Those who 
drink it are made thoughtless and unkind, and are led 
to do things of which they are ashamed when the 
alcohol has left the body. It causes men to commit 
crimes, and ruins them in both mind and body. It 
does so much harm that the Constitution and laws 
of the United States of America forbid the manufac¬ 
ture and sale of strong drink, such as beer, wine, and 
whisky. 

Opium. — Other narcotics that are often used are 
o'pium and morphine (mor'fm). Opium is the dried 
juice of opium plants. Morphine is a much more 
powerful substance that is manufactured from opium. 
The two drugs are used for easing pain and producing 
sleep. They are valuable drugs when they are given 
by a skilled physician, but when they are wrongly used, 
they are dangerous poisons, and injure both the body 
and the mind. Men often form habits of their use, 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


131 



and so their sale is forbidden by law, except on the 
order of a physician. 

The Tobacco Plant. — Tobacco is a plant whose 
stalk grows straight up almost as tall as a man. Its 
leaves are as large as 
the leaves of an ordi¬ 
nary book. It bears 
white or pink flowers 
which are about the 
size and shape of a 
very small drinking 
goblet. It is a beau¬ 
tiful plant and is some¬ 
times grown in flower 
gardens for ornament. 

Thousands of acres 
of land in our coun¬ 
try are now planted 
with tobacco, and mil¬ 
lions of pounds are 
raised each year. 

Nearly all of the crop 
is used either for smoking, or for chewing, or as snuff. 

History of Tobacco. — The people of olden times 
did not chew, or smoke, or take snuff, for they had 
no tobacco until the early discoverers found it in 
America, and learned its use from the Indians. Then 
men began to imitate the Indians, and soon the whole 
world learned the tobacco habit. After Virginia was 


Tobacco Plants 

There are many varieties of tobacco plants. 
Some grow higher than a tall man. 




132 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


settled, the principal crop which the colonists raised 
was tobacco, and the plant was valued so highly that 
its leaves were used as money. 

Use of Tobacco. — Farmers and florists use tobacco 
in killing insects on plants and animals, for it con¬ 
tains a poisonous substance called nicotine (nik'6-tm). 
Tobacco was once used as a medicine, but men long 
ago found out that it was too poisonous to be given to 
sick persons. 

Effects of Tobacco. — A person does not usually 
like tobacco when he first tries to use it, for three or 
four whiffs of smoke contain enough nicotine to make 
him feel sick. If he keeps on trying to smoke, he 
may become somewhat used to the nicotine, and can 
then smoke a cigar or a pipeful of tobacco without 
feeling sick. But some persons cannot learn to take 
tobacco at all without feeling sick, and all smokers 
and chewers have to be careful not to take too much 
tobacco at one time. 

Many persons think that nicotine is not poisoning 
them if they do not feel sick while they are smoking 
or chewing. But it has other poisonous effects be¬ 
sides making a person feel sick. It may poison the 
heart without giving any bad feelings at all. Very 
few persons are able to use a great deal of tobacco 
without showing some of its poisonous effects. 

The Tobacco Habit. — Those who have learned to 
use tobacco without feeling sick often learn to like it, 
and then they want it so badly that they do not stop 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


133 


using it even when they begin to feel its harm. Thus 
men form a habit of its use, and many have difficulty 
in breaking themselves of the habit when they feel 
its harm. 

Spitting. — A small chew of tobacco, or a cigarette 
contains enough nicotine to make a grown person 
dangerously sick if he should swallow it. But those 
who chew and smoke do not swallow much of their 
saliva. The spitting which goes with chewing and 
smoking is one of the bad things about the use of 
tobacco, for unhealthy smokers and chewers often 
spread diseases by spitting on floors and sidewalks 
(p. 54). Smoking and chewing are the cause of most 
of the spitting which is done in public places, and 
so the use of tobacco is often the cause of spreading 
diseases. Thus one who uses tobacco may endanger 
others as well as himself. 

Tobacco and Boys. — Tobacco is a far worse poison 
to growing boys than it is to grown men. Boys 
sometimes think that they can safely smoke the small 
rolls of tobacco called cigarettes , which contain only 
a small amount of nicotine. But the poison that is in 
a cigarette will harm a boy more than the poison of a 
pipeful of tobacco will harm a grown man. After a 
man is grown up, his muscles and heart and all the 
rest of his body cannot be easily changed, for they are 
fully formed and strong, like a great oak tree. But a 
boy’s muscles and heart are growing, and may be 
harmed as easily as a tender young oak. 


134 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


Tobacco and Growth. — If a boy does not grow, 
there is something the matter with him. In many 
schools and colleges the students are measured and 
weighed each year, and the boys who use tobacco 
are nearly always found to be shorter, lighter, and 
more slender than those who do not use tobacco. A 
boy may think he looks like a grown-up man while 
he is smoking but any use of tobacco will hinder his 
growing up to be a strong man. 

Tobacco and Strength. — Most boys’ schools have 
athletic teams which play games and run races with 
the boys from other schools. The boys on the teams 
have to train so as to be strong and healthy. If they 
wish to have the best chance of winning, they will 
not do anything which will lessen their strength. 
One thing which the boys must let alone is tobacco, 
for few smokers ever win. A boy cannot smoke and 
be a good athlete. 

Tobacco and the Mind. — The teachers of public 
schools keep a record of every pupil’s • work. In 
Chicago and in some other cities, the records of those 
who smoked have been examined and compared with 
the records of the rest of the pupils. Not one smoker 
in twenty was found to be up with the rest of the class, 
and hardly any boy who smoked was near the head 
of his class. A boy cannot smoke and have a 
bright mind. Men who hire boys to work for them try 
to employ those who do not smoke or use tobacco in 
in any other form. 


STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 


135 


QUESTIONS 

What did the ancient Romans mean by the word stimulus? 

Name some common things which are used as stimulants. 

What is a narcotic? 

What is a drug? 

What excuses are often made for using narcotics and other drugs? 
What harmful substance is in strong drink? 

What is fermentation? 

What harmful substance is usually formed by fermentation ? 

What is yeast? 

How is yeast used in making bread ? 

What are some of the dangerous effects of strong drink? 

What is opium ? morphine ? 

What harmful substance is in tobacco ? 

What are some of the harmful effects of tobacco ? 

How does the use of tobacco tend to spread diseases? 

Why is a cigarette more harmful to a boy than a pipeful of tobacco 
to a grown man? 

What effects have tobacco on growth ? on strength ? on the mind ? 


For the Teacher. — There is great need that the accepted scientific facts 
about stimulants and narcotics should be taught. In this chapter alcohol 
and tobacco are classed as poisonous drugs, and their effects are set forth 
in a simple form, and in outline only. 

Explain the relation of yeast plants to fermentation and to the production 
of alcohol; also explain that alcohol is produced during the fermentation of home¬ 
made wines and beers. Refer to Chapter II and explain that yeast plants grow 
and act like molds and bacteria. 

Explain that tobacco is especially harmful to persons who are young and 
growing. 


CHAPTER XVI 
BLOOD 

The Use of Blood. — Every part of the body must 
have both food and air in order to remain alive. These 
substances are supplied to the flesh and bones by the 
blood. If any part, such as a finger, should fail to 
get blood, it would die within a few hours. 

Blood consists of three parts: 

1. A liquid. 

2. Red cells. 

3. White cells. 

The liquid part of the blood is called se'rum. It 
looks like yellowish water, 
and contains digested food 
which has been taken up 
from the intestine by the 
villi (p. 82). One of its uses 
is to become food for those 
parts of the body which are 
in need of repair. 

Red Blood Cells.—A great 
(Magnified 500 times.) As seen many tiny round bodies float 

through a microscope, the cells usu- \ n the liquid of the blood, 
ally he upon one another like coins 

piled up. Most of these bodies are 

136 



Rh) Blood Cells 




BLOOD 


137 


red, and so they make the blood appear red. These 
red bodies are called red cor'puscles , or red blood cells. 
Their use is to take up oxygen from the air which is 
breathed, and to carry it through the body for use in 
oxidation. 

White Blood Cells. — A few of the bodies which 
float in the blood are whitish or colorless, and are 
called white corpuscles , or white 
blood cells. One of their uses is 
to destroy disease germs which 
may be in the blood and flesh. 

Every day some disease germs 
are breathed into the body with 
dusty air, some are swallowed 
with food, and a few are rubbed 
into cuts and scratches on the 
skin. But most of the germs fail 
to grow, because the white blood 
cells seize them and kill them as 
soon as they enter the flesh. 

The Heart. — While the body 
is alive, the blood is always kept 
flowing through all its parts by 
a pump called the heart. 

A person’s heart is about the 
size of his fist. It lies in the front part of the body 
behind the breastbone. If a hand is placed over 
the left side of the chest, the lower end of the heart 
can be felt beating at every stroke which it makes. 



Where the Heart, Lungs, 
and Stomach Are 


H, heart; L, lungs; S, stomach. 
Notice how high they lie in the 
body. 




138 


BLOOD 



The heart is a double pump. Its right side pumps 
blood through the lungs only, but its left side pumps 
blood through all the rest of the body. 

Each side of the heart consists of two parts. The 
upper part has thin walls and is called an au'ricle. 
The lower part is called a ven'tricle , and has walls 
which are thick and strong. The ventricle does most 

of the work of pump¬ 
ing the blood. 

Heartbeats. — The 
heart of a man beats 
about seventy-five 
times a minute, but a 
child’s heart beats a 
hundred or more times 
a minute. When a 
person runs fast or 
does other hard work 
with the muscles, the 
heart beats hard and 
fast in order to sup- 

Heart of a Three-Months-Old Lamb Pty working parts 

(Natural size.) RA , right auricle; RV, right with all the food and 
ventricle: LA, left auricle: LV, left ventricle. ^ 41i 

’ oxygen that they need. 

If a person runs hard until he is ready to drop, 
his heart may keep on beating hard after he stops 
running. In this way boys who train for long races 
sometimes injure their hearts for life. It is a good 
thing to practice running and lifting, but if a person 


BLOOD 


139 


puts forth all his strength for more than a few minutes 
in a day, he may harm his heart. 

During a fever or other sickness the heart usually 
beats faster than it does in health. If it beats twice 
as fast, the sickness is dangerous, for the heart may 
soon wear itself out by its rapid work. If you should 
become very sick, lie still in bed so as to give your 
heart as little work to do as possible, for every motion 
will add to its work. 

Arteries. — The heart sends the blood to every part 
of the body by means of tubes called ar'teries. Each 
beat of the heart causes a 
wave to shoot along the ar¬ 
teries. This wave is called 
the pulse. The pulse can be 
felt wherever a large artery 
runs near the skin. It may 
easily be felt on the thumb 
side of the front of the wrist. 

When a doctor visits a sick 
person, he feels of the pulse of 
the wrist and counts its beats 
to see how fast and how hard 
the heart is beating. 

Arteries can change their 
size in order to carry the 
amount of blood that each part of the body needs. 
They are wrapped with muscles which can shorten 
themselves and make the blood tubes small. When 



Feeling the Pulse 
The pulse may be felt on the thumb 
side of the front of the wrist. 




140 


BLOOD 


the muscles are not acting, the arteries are large and 
carry a large quantity of blood. On a cold day the 
arteries of the skin become snlall in order to keep the 
blood away from the cold air. But when the body is 
warm, the arteries become large and the skin becomes 
red with blood. 

Veins. — The part of the blood that is not used 
by the flesh is brought back to the heart by another 

set of tubes called 
veins. If you hold 
your hand down at 
arm’s length for a 
few minutes, blood 
will fill the veins 
under the skin. The 
veins will then look 
like bluish, raised 
lines. If you hold 
your hand above 
of the veins and the 

the ends of the ar¬ 
teries into the beginnings of the veins by passing 
through tiny tubes called cap’iliaries. The capillaries 
are so small that they cannot be seen without a micro¬ 
scope. They are so close together that they make the 
skin appear pink. Press the end of a finger upon the 
back of your hand. After the finger is lifted, the spot 
that was pressed will appear white, because the blood 



Veins in the Hand 

Veins are larger and much more numerous than 
arteries. 


your head, the blood will flow out 
lines will disappear. 

Capillaries. — Blood goes from 




BLOOD 


141 


will be squeezed from its capillaries. But in a second 
the blood will return and make the spot pink again. 

Substances go back and forth between the blood 
and the flesh by passing through the sides of the cap¬ 
illaries, as water soaks through a thin sheet of 
paper. In this way food and air pass from the blood 
to the flesh, and 


waste matter goes 
from the flesh into 
the blood. 

The Circulation. 
—Blood flows from 
the heart through 
the arteries, then 
through the capil¬ 
laries, and then 
through the veins 
back to the heart. 
This flow of blood 
through the body 
is called the circu¬ 
lation. 

If a drop of blood 
leaving a finger 
were to go back to 
the finger, it would 
flow to the right 
side of the heart, 
then to the lungs, 





Diagram of the Circulation of the Blood 

The arrows show the directions in which the blood 
flows. 












142 


BLOOD 


then to the left side of the heart, and then to the finger 
again. It would do this in about half a minute. 

The blood in the body is always flowing in a swift 
and endless stream. The only part of the stream which 
fails to return to the heart at once is the small quantity 
which passes through the sides of the capillaries into 
the flesh. 

Tight Clothes. — Tight bands around any part of 
the body will press upon the veins and will hinder the 
flow of blood. Wear your clothing loose so that it will 
not press upon the blood tubes, but will allow the blood 
to flow freely. Tight garters around the legs may make 
the feet swollen and painful by pressing upon the veins. 
In place of garters that press against the skin it is 
.better to wear stocking supporters that hang from the 


waist. 



A tight ring may press 
upon the veins and keep 
the blood from flowing 
out of the finger. Then 
the finger may become 
so swollen with blood 
that the ring cannot be 
taken off. One may 
squeeze out the blood by 
winding a small string 


round and round the 

Removing a Tight Finger Ring r . 


xxniiviuviiNu A 1 jvijno ,, .... 

The string wound around the finger lessens the beginning at the 


size of the finger by squeezing out the blood, tip. The ring may 




BLOOD 


143 


then be slipped off while the finger is squeezed 
small. 

Fainting. — A bad fright, or a sickness, or an injury 
may cause the heart almost to stop beating. The skin 
will then look pale, the brain will get but little blood, 
the mind will stop acting, and the person will fall down 
in a faint. 

If you see a person fainting, lay him on his back, and 
keep his head low so that the blood may flow to it. 
Throw a little cold water into his face to rouse him. In 
a moment his heart will beat strongly again, and his 
mind will be as clear as before. 

Tobacco and the Heart. — When a person is made 
stomach-sick by tobacco, he looks pale, because his 
heart is also poisoned and does not pump blood so well 
as it should. Even if tobacco should not make a per¬ 
son sick at once, yet it will often slowly weaken his 
heart. Many persons have to give up the use of to¬ 
bacco because they cannot do hard work when they 
use it. 


QUESTIONS 

What two things does the blood carry to every part of the body? 
What is the color of the liquid part of the blood ? 

Of what use is this part ? 

What makes the blood appear red? 

Of what use are the red cells in the blood ? 

Of what use are the white blood cells ? 

What makes the blood flow throughout the body? 

Where is the heart situated? 

Why does the heart beat fast when a person runs ? 


144 


BLOOD 


Where may the pulse be felt ? 

What is the cause of pulse beats ? 

What is the name of. the tubes that carry blood away from the 
heart? 

What are capillaries ? 

What is the name of the tubes that bring blood back to the heart ? 
Where may veins be seen in the body? 

In which set of blood tubes do food and air leave the blood and go 
to the flesh? 

Why does a spot of skin become white when it is pressed ? 
Through what tubes does the blood flow in its circulation ? 

How may a tight ring be taken off a finger ? 

What should be done for a person who has fainted ? 

What does tobacco do to the heart? 


For the Teacher. — This chapter gives the basic elementary facts re¬ 
garding the blood and its circulation. The topics of tight clothes, fainting, 
and tobacco illustrate the results of a disturbance of the circulation. The 
other topics are of almost equal importance, and the descriptions are to be 
studied and learned. 

Show the results of an obstruction to the free flow of blood by winding 
a small elastic band snugly, but not tightly, around the base of a finger. In 
about one minute the finger will swell and become purple, because the veins 
are closed, while the arteries remain open; and the finger becomes filled with 
blood which cannot flow out. 


CHAPTER XVII 
WOUNDS 

Danger from Wounds. — The epidermis of a healthy 
skin will not permit poisons and disease germs to enter 
the flesh (p. 24). When the skin is cut or torn, poisons 
and disease germs may enter the flesh through the 
wound and make it sore. The poisons and germs may 
pass from the wound through the body and cause a 
dangerous sickness. The wound may also open a 
large blood tube and produce a severe bleeding. 

When a person has a wound which breaks the skin, 
there are two things to do: first, to stop the bleeding; 
and second, to cover, or dress , the wound so that poisons 
and disease germs cannot pass through it and enter the 
flesh. 

Bleeding. — If the skin is pricked with a pin, a drop 
or two of blood is all that will flow out, for the wound 
is very small. If the flesh is cut without touching an 
artery or a good-sized vein, there will be a little bleeding 
from the capillaries, but it will not be dangerous. If 
the gash cuts a good-sized vein, blood will ooze from 
it for a few minutes and will then stop flowing. A 
wound does not usually bleed for many minutes unless 
it opens an artery as large as a pin, or larger. 

OV. PERS. HYG.- 10 14s 


i 4 6 


WOUNDS 


If a gash cuts a large artery, blood will spurt from it 
with each beat of the pulse. A small gash that opens an 
artery will bleed far more than a large gash that cuts 
only veins and capillaries. One or two cupfuls of 
blood may be lost without much harm, but the loss of 
a quart of blood is dangerous. 

Most wounds do not bleed much, for there are only a 
few large arteries near the surface of the body. Nearly 
all of them lie deep in the flesh where they are out of 
the way of danger from small wounds. If the arteries 
in the skin were as large as the veins, the bleeding from 
every cut would be dangerous. 

Clotting. —- In about five minutes after blood runs 
from a cut, it becomes solid like jelly. This blood jelly 
is called a clot. The effect of clotting is to stop the 
bleeding. If a capillary, or a vein, or a small artery 
is cut, the blood will soon clot and stop the bleeding 
by forming a plug in the bleeding tube. If a large 
artery is cut, the blood may push the clot away as fast 
as it is formed, and then the bleed¬ 
ing will not stop without help. 

First Way to Stop a Bleeding. — 
When any one is badly wounded, 
the first thing to do is to stop the 

First Way of Stopping bleeding. Do not waste time in 
a Bleeding i i • r j , ,, 

Grasp the flesh and hold the l0 ° km g f ° r a COrd > a cl ° th > 0r 
sides of the wound together. a handkerchief, or a bandage, for 

you can stop a bleeding by pressing upon or around the 
wound with your fingers or hands. Do not be afraid 





WOUNDS 


147 


of the blood, but quickly grasp the flesh around the 
wound, and hold the sides of the cut together with your 
hands until a firm blood clot forms. You can easily 
squeeze the flesh hard enough to close the largest artery. 
In most cuts the bleed¬ 
ing will stop after you 
have held the wound 
for five or ten minutes. 

Second Way to Stop 
a Bleeding. — Crumple 
up a handkerchief and 
press it firmly on the 
wounded part. You 
can bind it in place by 
tying another handkerchief over it snugly enough to 
hold the cut artery tightly closed. Use clean hand¬ 
kerchiefs so that they 
will not carry dirt into 
the wound. 

Third Way to Stop 
a Bleeding. — If a very 
large artery is cut, or 
if a finger, or arm, or 
leg is badly cut or torn, 
you may not be able to 
put a dressing over the 
wound tight enough to stop the bleeding. Then try 
a third way to stop the flow of blood. Tie a cord or 
handkerchief loosely around the bleeding part between 



Third Way of Stopping a Bleeding 
Tie a handkerchief around the bleeding part 
and tighten it by twisting it. 



Second Way of Stopping a Bleeding 
Press a handkerchief upon the wound. 






148 WOUNDS 

the wound and the heart, and tighten it by twisting 
it with your hand or a stick until it begins to 
press into the flesh. This will 
stop the bleeding in the largest 
arteries. But a wound will seldom 
bleed so much that the cord and 
stick will be needed. 

Nosebleed. — If your nose 
bleeds, sit still and hold the nos¬ 
trils closed with your thumb and 
finger for five minutes while you 
breathe through your mouth. 
This will close the bleeding spot 
and allow the blood to clot. While 
your nose is bleeding, do not blow 
it, for that would blow the clot away from the bleed¬ 
ing spot and cause the 
blood to flow faster than 
before. 

Dressing a Wound. — 

After bleeding in a wound 
has been stopped, the next 
thing to do is to cover the 
wound with a dressing. 

Strips torn from an old 
handkerchief, or from a 
worn-out sheet or under¬ 
garment will make good Handkerchiefs Used as a Dressing 

... , Make a clean handkerchief into a pad 

dressings, it they are clean, and bind it into place with another one. 




Hold the nostrils closed for 
four minutes, or until the 
blood clots. 






WOUNDS 


149 


One of the best of all dressings consists of sheets of 
cotton called absor'bent cotton. Rolls of absorbent 
cotton may be bought at drug stores. 

Place a layer of dressing on a wound and hold it in 
place with a bandage. A handkerchief makes a good 
bandage. Fold it 
cornerwise as if you 
were about to tie it 
over your eyes in 
playing blindman’s 
buff. Lay the thick 
part over the 
wound and wrap 

the ends around Absorbent cotton, and gauze roller bandage. Both 

may be bought at a drug store. 

the wounded part 

and tie them. You may also hold the dressings in 
place by using a roller bandage such as may be bought 

at a drug store. 

A few disease 
germs may nearly 
always be found on 
the skin and in dirt 
on the skin. They 
may be killed with 
iodine (l'6-din). If a 
cut is small, paint it 
and the skin around it with tincture of iodine before 
dressing it. A small bottle of tincture of iodine is a 
good thing to have in the house for use on wounds. 



Roller Bandage on an Arm 
I t is smooth and will not become loose readily. 



Good Materials for a Dressing 







WOUNDS 


I S° 

Finger Stall. If a finger has been cut or is sore, 
you can easily dress it by wrapping it with a little 
absorbent cotton and putting it into a finger stall. The 
stall is made of muslin and is shaped like a glove finger. 

It has a strip reaching down 
the back of the hand, and 
strings on the end for tying 
around the wrist. 

Wet Dressing. — If the skin 
around a wound is dirty, or if 
the flesh around the wound is 
red and sore, wet the dressing 
with something that will kill 
the disease germs. Put a heap¬ 
ing tablespoonful of borax into 
a pint of clean boiled water, 
and pour some of the liquid 
on the dressing every hour or 
two, in order to keep it wet. Change the dressing 
every day. If the wet dressing is used, the disease 
germs will usually soon die, the soreness will pass away, 
and the wound will quickly heal. 

Effects of Disease Germs. — If disease germs grow 
in a wound, the flesh will be red and sore and often 
swollen. Formerly, when a person had a wound in this 
condition, he was said to have taken cold in the 
wound, or to have blood poisoning in it. The harm 
was supposed to be caused by cold air and dampness; 
but this belief was wrong. The soreness, redness, 




WOUNDS 


151 



White Blood Cells 
(Magnified 500 times.) Pus con¬ 
sists of white blood cells that have 
been killed by disease germs. 


and swelling are caused by disease germs which grow 
in the wounded flesh. If a 
wound contains disease germs, 
it^will be sore for many days, 
and will heal very slowly. But 
if a wound is kept free from 
disease germs, it will not be 
sore or painful, but the flesh 
will grow together and heal in 
three or four days. 

A white, creamy matter, 
called pus , often runs from a sore wound. The pus is 
mostly white blood cells which were killed while they 

were trying to destroy 
disease germs (p. 137). 
Pus in a cut or wound 
is a sign that disease 
germs are growing in 
the flesh. The white 
matter in a pimple or 
boil is pus, and is usu¬ 
ally caused by disease 
germs growing in the 
skin around a hair root. 

a wet dressing 
upon a wound that is 
red or sore, or that gives off pus. 

Washing a Wound. — When you give first aid to a 
wounded person, do not wash the wound. The water 



One Kind of Disease Germs Which 
Produce Pus 

(Magnified 1000 times.) This kind is the one Use 
which is the usual cause of pimples and boils. 






152 


WOUNDS 


with which a wound is washed may have disease germs 
in it, or it may carry disease germs from the skin into 
the wound; and so washing a wound is likely to do 
more harm than good. Let the blood remain in the 
wound and soak into the dressing, for blood itself is 
a good dressing, and will help to kill disease germs. 
After you have put a first-aid dressing on a wound, 
call a doctor or nurse, who will wash and cleanse it, 
and dress it in the proper way. 

QUESTIONS 

What are two great dangers from wounds? 

How much blood may be lost without danger? 

In what way does a cut artery bleed differently from a cut vein ? 

Of what use is the clotting of blood ? 

If you should see a person bleeding badly from a wound, what is 
the first thing you would do to stop the bleeding? 

What is the second thing to be done in stopping bjeeding? 

What may be done to stop the bleeding when a very large artery is 
cut? 

How may a nosebleed be stopped ? 

What harm comes from disease germs in a wound? 

How may disease germs be kept out of a wound ? 

How should you dress a wound ? 

Of what use is iodine in dressing a wound ? 

Why should you not wash a wound ? 

How should you put on a first-aid dressing? 

How should you use handkerchiefs as a dressing and bandage? 

How should you use a finger stall? 

What is meant by taking cold in a wound? 

What is pus? 

What is the cause of pus in a wound ? 

What is a wet dressing? How should you use it? 


WOUNDS 


153 


For the Teacher. — This is a most practical chapter. The three methods 
of stopping a bleeding are those which a physician or trained nurse uses, and 
which any pupil can readily learn. There is no need to burden the memory 
with the distinctions between arterial and venous hemorrhages. The point 
is that pressure will stop the bleeding, whatever its source may be. The 
simplest and quickest way to make pressure is to use the fingers or hands. 
These are always available and sufficient. Use the fingers or hands without 
hesitation to stop the immediate flow, and then take time to think what 
further steps are necessary, and to secure handkerchiefs, dressings, bandages, 
or a tourniquet. Only very rarely will a tourniquet be necessary. Do not 
use one unless all other means fail. 

Teach the simplest way to apply a first-aid dressing to a wound, — which 
is to bind a clean handkerchief or other dressing rather firmly upon the 
wound without washing it. The blood itself is one of the best dressings. Wash 
the skin after the dressing has been applied. 

A wet dressing is simply one which is kept wet with a disinfectant, or even 
with boiled water. Use a wet dressing on two kinds of wounds and sores: 

1. Those which are dirty. 

2. Those which are red, or inflamed, or swollen, or contain pus. No 
harm will be done by using a wet dressing on any wound. 

One object of an old-fashoned poultice was to cause pus to form. This is the 
very opposite of the modern object of a dressing. A wet dressing will do all the 
good that a poultice was expected to do, and in addition it will help to kill disease 
germs in the skin. 


CHAPTER XVIII 


FIRST AID 

Fright. — When an accident occurs, those who see it 
are often too frightened to help those who are hurt. 
If you are hurt, or if you see some one else hurt, do not 
cry out, or shout, or run around, but keep quiet for a 
few seconds and try to think. Then you will soon be 
brave and cool, and can see what the matter is, and 
can also think what to do. 

When you try to help a person who is hurt, look for 
three dangerous injuries: 

i. Shock. 2. Bleeding. 3. Broken bones. 

Shock. — A person who is hurt is often in a state of 
mind called shock. When you have a hard fall, or are 
struck a hard blow, you have a feeling of shock. A 
person who is mildly shocked is dazed and dizzy, and 
cannot speak for a moment. One who is badly hurt 
and shocked may be faint, or unconscious and helpless. 

A person who is in a state of shock cannot help him¬ 
self. You can help him by doing two things: 

First, carry him to a safe place where he will be 
out of danger of being hurt more. 

Second, lay him down with his head low, so that 
blood can easily flow to his brain, 


154 


FIRST AID 


155 


These two things are about all that you can do to 
help a person in a state of shock. Do not rub him, 
or shake him, or disturb him, for thus you may make 
the shock worse. But look him over gently to see if 
he is bleeding or has a broken bone. 

Pain. — Nearly every person who is hurt feels pain 
in the wounded part. A person who is crying with 
pain is not in so much danger as 
one who is in a state of shock, and 
is so dazed or unconscious that he 
cannot cry out. 

Bleeding. — If there is any 
bleeding, try to stop it at once, for 
a person may bleed to death before 
a doctor can be called (p. 146). 

Broken Bone. — If a bone of an 
arm or leg is broken, the limb will 
be painful when it is moved. The 
pain is caused by a bending of the 
bone, and may be lessened if the 
bone is held straight. 

The thing to do for a bone that 



is badly broken is to bind a stick A . * hin ’ narro ^ b ° ard “ 

* with two handkerchiefs 

or a thin board along the whole makes a good first-aid splint 
, . r . . , for a broken arm or leg. 

length of the limb so as to keep 

the bone from bending. Then the injured person may 

be carried home without danger to the broken part. 

Bruise. — When the flesh is bruised by a blow or 
a fall, some of the capillaries will be torn. A little 



FIRST AID 


156 

blood will then flow out and make a bluish stain under 
the skin. A bruise is not usually dangerous if the skin 
is not broken, for the skin will keep disease germs out 
of the flesh. Soaking the bruised spot in hot water 
will help to stop the bleeding and to ease the pain. 

Splinters in the Skin. — A splinter or thorn in the 
skin makes a hole through which disease germs may 
pass into the flesh. If you get a splinter, or a thorn, 
or a needle in your flesh, 
have it taken out as soon 
as possible. If the flesh 
becomes sore, cover the spot 
with a wet dressing so as to 
kill the disease germs that 
may be in the flesh (p. 150). 

Lockjaw. — Many persons 
are wounded by stepping on 
nails and other sharp things 
which lie on the ground. 
These wounds are likely to 
be dangerous because the 
germs of lockjaw may often be found in the ground 
and may be carried deep into the flesh. Wounds made 
by stepping on nails on the ground are more dangerous 
than the same kinds of wounds made in other ways. 

If you run a nail into your foot or hand, put a wet 
dressing upon the wound (p. 150) and then go to a 
doctor and have it examined and treated. Lockjaw 
antitoxin, given soon enough, will prevent the disease. 



Disease Germs of Lockjaw 
(Magnified 1000 times.) They are 
often found in garden soil and are 
likely to enter wounds of the feet. 



FIRST AID 


157 


Wounds made by firecrackers and other fireworks 
are also likely to contain germs of lockjaw. If you 
receive a bad burn on the Fourth of July, go to a doctor 
at once and have the wound dressed. 

Bee Stings. — When bees or wasps sting the skin, 
they leave a poison which makes the flesh smart and 
swell. There is no danger from the stings unless they 
are very numerous. Putting a little ammonia and 
cold water on the part that has been stung will help to 
stop the pain. 

Usually when bees or wasps buzz around you, they 
will not sting if you do not make a sudden motion. 

Clothes Afire. — When your clothes are afire, the 
first thing to do is to lie down. Then the fire will not 
spread fast, just as the flame will not spread on a burn¬ 
ing match when it lies flat. Also roll over and over 
to crush out the flames. 

If you see a person with his clothes afire, throw him 
to the ground and roll him over and over. If you 
can get a coat, or blanket, or carpet quickly, wrap it 
round him. This will help to smother the fire. 

Burns. — One of the best things to do for a burn or 
a scald is to hold the burned part in cold water until 
it can be dressed. Bandage the burn just as you would 
a wound, and soak the dressings in an oily liquid. A 
good thing to use is a mixture of linseed oil and lime- 
water. This makes a yellow liquid called canon oil. 

Blisters. — If the skin is rubbed hard, or burned, 
its epidermis may become loosened and puffed up with 


15^ 


FIRST AID 


blood serum, in a blister . It is best to let a blister 
alone until it dries up. If a blister becomes broken, 
dress it as you would a wound. 

Poison Ivy. — The skins of some persons will become 
sore and blistered a day or two after they have touched 
poison ivy or swamp sumac. If you have been near 
the plants, you can get rid of the poison by scrubbing 
the hands and face well with soap and hot water. If 
you do this as soon as you can, you will probably not 
be poisoned. 

Poison ivy is a vine that creeps over trees, fences, 
and stone walls. It looks much like a harmless vine 
called Virginia creeper, but each leafstalk of the poison 



Poison Ivy Virginia Creeper 


Poison ivy leaves are in threes; Virginia creeper leaves are in fives. 

ivy bears three leaves, while each leafstalk of the Vir¬ 
ginia creeper bears five leaves. 




FIRST AID 


159 


Sunburn. — The bright sun shining on the skin 
may make it red and sore, and may sometimes cause 
blisters. After a person has been in the sunlight for 
a few days, the outer part of the skin will produce a 
brown coloring matter called tan. The tan is like a 
dark curtain. It tends to keep the light from reach¬ 
ing the flesh and burning it. You can keep from being 
sunburned by letting the sun shine upon your skin for 
only a short time each day until the tan is formed. 

QUESTIONS 

When a person is hurt, for what three dangerous injuries should you 
look? 

What is shock t What should be done for a person in a shock ? 

What should be done to help a person who has a broken bone ? 

What is the cause of the bluish stain of bruised flesh ? 

What should be done for a bruise ? 

What is the danger from a splinter in the flesh? 

What is the danger from a wound made by stepping on a nail? 
What should be done for the wound? 

What should be done for insect stings ? 

How may the flames be put out when a person’s clothes are afire? 

What should be done for a burn? for a blister? 

What should be done to prevent poisoning by poison ivy? 

How can you tell poison ivy from Virginia creeper? 

What is tan ? Of what use is it ? How can you prevent sunburn ? 


For the Teacher. — This chapter deals with some of the most common con¬ 
ditions in which any one may be called to give first aid. The very first essential 
is that the person giving first aid shall know where the danger lies, and shall 
not do more harm than good to the sufferer. One standard method of dealing 
with each emergency is given. Have the pupils memorize this method. 


CHAPTER XIX 
SAFETY FIRST 

Dangers in Olden Times. — When the first settlers 
came to America, the Indians were often in danger 
from wild beasts and from their enemies. If an Indian 
did not keep watch all the time, he was liable to lose 
his life or the lives of his wife and children. He and 
his family lived by keeping watch against the dangers 
of wolves and panthers, and of Indians with whom his 
tribe was at war. 

Present Dangers. — We are no longer in danger 
from wild beasts or deadly enemies, but yet we are in 
about as much danger as an Indian formerly was. 
About 100,000 persons are killed in the United States 
every year, and five times that number are badly hurt. 
This means that one person in every two hundred in¬ 
habitants will be badly hurt during the year; and 
that in a large school two or three children will be 
wounded or killed. Automobiles kill about 10,000 
persons in the United States every year, and machinery 
about as many more. While we to-day have many 
comforts of which the Indians knew nothing, we are 
also in danger from many things which did not trouble 
an Indian. A modern girl or boy must needs watch 
out for his life more carefully than a young Indian. 

160 


SAFETY FIRST 


161 


Causes of Present Dangers to Life. — The dangers 
to an Indian were largely hidden and came from beasts 
and enemies that kept themselves out of sight as they 
crept upon him. But most modern dangers are from 
things which are in plain sight. We can guard against 
dangers to life much more easily than an Indian could. 
Failure to keep ourselves from accidents is due to four 
principal causes : 

1. Ignorance. — You may wish to do the right thing, 
but you may not know how, and may need to be taught. 

2. Carelessness. — You may know how to be on 
your guard, and yet may be thoughtless. If so, you 
need to wake up. 

3. Mischief-making. — You may know how to act 
and may be careful, and yet you may choose to make 
trouble for some one else. The mischief-maker de¬ 
serves to be punished. 

4. Daring. — Some boys and girls who are careful 
and thoughtful do dangerous things foolishly, just 
because some one dares them to do so. Pay no at¬ 
tention to the person who dares you to do something. 

Safety First. — Many dangers are always about 
us. Automobiles are nearly always in sight upon a 
street, and factories and shops with whirling machinery 
are in every town. The dangers are so common that 
we get used to them and often forget to be on our 
guard. We are often tempted to hurry and take 
chances of escaping dangers, but looking out for safety 
first is the only sure way of preventing injury. 


OV. PERS. HYG.-II 


162 


SAFETY FIRST 


Reporting Unsafe Things. — It is the duty of every 
man, woman, and school child to tell the policeman, 
or janitor, or teacher, or other responsible person, 
about any unsafe thing which is seen. Among the 
things which should be reported are : 

Broken or missing guard rails around a cliff or stair¬ 
way. 

Worn stairs. 

Gulleys in a road after a storm. 

Broken chairs and seats. 

Nails or pieces of glass strewn along the road; but 
if there are only a few of them, pick them up and do 
not wait for some one else to come along and do it. 

Many persons say, “It is none of my business.” 
It is your business, for you are one of the people and 
you depend upon others to protect you. Do your 
part to protect others. 

Safety Signs. — It is almost impossible to make 
everything so safe that there is never any danger, but 
many danger spots are marked. All railroad crossings 
are marked by big signs, some of which say, “ Stop ! 
Look! Listen! ” Such a sign means exactly what 
it says, and if a sign were not in plain sight, many per¬ 
sons would not know that a railroad was crossing the 
road just ahead. Many railroads employ lecturers 
to visit schools to urge the children to give heed to the 
signs. 

How to Cross a Street. — When you cross a street, 
remember that automobiles travel on the side of the 


SAFETY FIRST 


163 


road which is on the right-hand side of the driver. 
When you start to cross, the automobiles coming 
toward you are on your left, and when you pass the 



When you start across, watch out on your left. When you pass the middle of the 
street, watch out on your right. 

middle of the street, they are on your right. Remem¬ 
ber the following rules in crossing a street: 

1. When you are ready to cross, look both ways, 
— to the left and to the right, —■ and be sure there is 
room for you to pass. 

2. When you start across, look out for automobiles 
on your left, but when you reach the middle of the 
street, look out for those on your right. 

3. If you are in the way of an automobile, wave 
your hand to signal the driver which side of you you 
wish him to go. 
















164 


SAFETY FIRST 


4. If you are in a city, cross the street only at a 
corner, and not in the middle of a block. 

5. If a traffic policeman is on duty, watch for his 
signal before you start to cross the street. 

You see there are many things to think about in do¬ 
ing such a simple thing as crossing a street. 

How to Get on and off a Car. — There are several 
things to remember in getting on or off a street car or 
automobile: 

1. Go on the right side of the car. It will be on the 
side nearest to the curb, where no other car is likely 
to pass by you. 

2. Wait for the car to stop. 

3. When you get on the car, grasp the car or its 
handle with your right hand and step up with your 
left foot first. If the car should start, you will be in 
the best position to hold yourself upright. 

4. When you get off the car, do so from the right 
side, and face the direction in which the car is going. 
Grasp the handle with your left hand and step off with 
your right foot first, so that if the car should start, you 
can keep your balance by taking a few steps forward. 

How to Care for a Bonfire. — Children are sometimes 
told to rake the yard and burn the rubbish. There 
are several things to think about in making a bonfire: 

1. Choose a time when little or no wind blows, and 
when its direction is away from anything that might 
catch fire or be harmed. 


SAFETY FIRST 


165 

2. Choose a place at some distance from a building. 

3. Make only a small fire and put only a small quan¬ 
tity of stuff on at once. 

4. Stay by the fire until it is out. Do not leave it 
smoldering and smoking. 

5. Cover the ashes with soil or pour water over 
them. Be sure that there are no coals or sparks left 
to blow about. 

Explosive Liquids. — Many fii;es are started by 
means of explosive liquids, such as gasoline, kerosene, 
and alcohol. Stoves burning kerosene are often used 
in cooking, and gasoline is used in cleaning clothes. 
Some form of alcohol is used in many varnishes. All 
these substances give off vapors which easily take 
fire and may set fire to cans full of the substance. A 
can may explode and throw the burning liquid upon 
a person. It is dangerous to handle any of these 
liquids near a burning light or fire. They are too 
dangerous to be handled by children. 

Dangers to Health from Carelessness. — Many ac¬ 
cidents happen because some one is thoughtless or 
careless, or is selfish and does not care for the rights 
and comforts of other persons. Some of the danger¬ 
ous things which are done by careless boys or girls, 
are: 

Playing on streets which are not set aside for play. 

Making icy slides on sidewalks. * 

Throwing banana peels and fruit skins on side¬ 
walks. 


SAFETY FIRST 


166 



Wrong Way Right Way 

To Use a Jackknife 

Do not cut toward your hand or body. Always cut away from your hand or body. 


Pulling a knife toward the body when cutting, in¬ 
stead of pushing the knife away from the body. 

Throwing stones or sticks toward persons, or into 
places in which some one may be out of sight. 

Pointing guns or air rifles at any one. 

Leaving things in hallways, especially dark halls. 

Sitting with the feet in the aisle at school. 

Practical Jokes. — Many accidents or injuries are 
the result of practical jokes which are played in order 
to annoy some one or to get some one into trouble. 
It is mean as well as dangerous to injure any one who 
trusts you. Some forms of practical jokes which are 
dangerous to health are : 





SAFETY FIRST 


167 


Hiding one’s hat or coat. 

Tripping or pushing another. 

Putting a tack or pin in a chair. 

A harmful kind of practical joke is that of frighten¬ 
ing a child. Anything that makes a child afraid of 
the dark or of ghosts or of crawling things, does that 
child a great harm. It spoils sleep and keeps a pupil 
from putting his mind on his lessons. It is also often 
hard to overcome these fears, and many persons suffer 
from them all through life because some big boy or 
girl frightened them while they were young. 

Daring. — Many accidents and injuries happen 
because some one is foolishly daring, and tries to show 
off before others. Some of the dangerous things which 
are often done in a daring way are: 

Coasting on a public street. 

Going on thin ice. 

Jumping through bonfires. 

Touching fallen electric wires. 

Doing “ stunts ” in the game of “ Follow the 
Leader. ” 

A thoughtful boy or girl can do much to keep others 
from doing dangerous things. Boys and girls like to 
follow a leader who is known to be careful. 

QUESTIONS 

What dangers to life did the Indians have to face ? 

What dangers do modern people in the United States have to face? 

How many people in the United States are killed by accidents each 

year? 


SAFETY FIRST 


168 

Give four reasons why modern people meet with a great number of 
accidents. 

If you see an unsafe thing, what is your duty ? 

Why are safety signs placed at dangerous places ? 

What is the meaning of the sign at a railroad crossing, — “ Stop! 
Look! Listen!”? 

Give some rules for crossing a street. 

How should you get aboard a car? 

How should you get off a car ? 

How should you care for a bonfire ? 

Name some explosive liquids in common use. What is the danger 
from them? 

Name some common dangers to life or health which are due to 
carelessness. 

What is the danger from practical jokes ? 

In what respect is a practical joker a mean person? 

Why is it foolish to yield to any one who dares you to do some¬ 
thing? 

v- 

For the Teacher. — Safety first can best be taught by taking advantage of 
events which occur at school, or of local accidents which are known to the 
pupils, and discussing the topic or principle which is involved. 

Little good will come from merely warning pupils, but great good may be 
accomplished by giving instructions regarding the basis of the warning. For 
example, it does little good to tell a pupil, “ Be careful when you cross a street,” 
but the pupil will be interested and impressed by an explanation of the reason 
for rule 2 on page 163. 

Emphasize the need of care in fire protection. Explain the three great 
causes of fires: 

1. The careless use of matches. 

2. Allowing inflammable rubbish to collect in buildings or near them. 

3. Lighted cigarettes or cigar butts. 

Have each pupil find out the location of the fire alarm box nearest to his 
home; also the nearest fire hydrant. 

Emphasize the value of courtesy, obedience, generosity, and good manners 
in *preventing accidents and injuries. Explain the danger which comes from 
an excessive idea of personal independence which Americans have, leading 
to disrespect for law, and to accidents and injuries. Cite speed mania as an 
example. 


CHAPTER XX 
BREATHING 


Need of Breathing. — Three substances — food, 
water, and air — are taken into the body, and are 
used during every moment of life. The body gets its 
air by breathing. Every living thing must have air 
in order to live. Air is a gas, and yet the weight of 
the air which the body uses in a day is greater than the 
weight of its daily food. 

Breathing, and the uses to which air is put in the 
body, are called respiration. The changes produced 
by respiration are like 
those which take place 
in a fire. 

Oxidation in a Fire. 

— When a fire burns 
in a stove, air from the 
draft unites with the 
fuel in the fire box, 
and the air and fuel 

. . Diagram of Oxidation in a Stove 

together become 

° When a fire burns, oxygen from the air unites 

changed to smoke and with fuel; and the two give off heat and become 
.. r . smoke and ashes. 

ashes. Not all of the 

air from the draft is used in the burning, but only 
that part which is called oxygen and which forms about 

169 





















BREATHING 



170 

one fifth of the air. The joining of oxygen to the 
fuel is called oxida'tion. 

Oxidation in the Body. — Oxidation like that in a 
stove is always going on in every living body. The 


Oxidation in the Body 

The warmth and strength of the body come from the oxidation of its food and flesh. 

fuel which is oxidized in the body is food and living 
flesh, and the oxygen comes from the air which is 
breathed into the body. 

Oxidation produces heat. In a fire oxygen unites 
with the fuel rapidly enough to make great heat and a 
flame. In the body oxidation goes on slowly and 
gently, and yet the oxidation of food and flesh keeps 













BREATHING 


171 

the body warm, and produces the same quantity of 
heat that the food and flesh would have made if they 
had been burned in a stove. 

Oxidation also produces power. When you run or 
do other work, the strength which you use comes from 
the oxidation in your body, just as the power of an 
automobile comes from the burning gas in its engine. 

Breathing. — The object of breathing is to supply 
the body with oxygen. A person takes a breath by 
raising the ribs, thus mak¬ 
ing the upper part of the 
body larger. This allows 
air to flow into the body. 

He expels a breath by 
letting the ribs fall, thus 
making the upper part of 
the body smaller. A grown 
person usually breathes 
from fifteen to twenty times 
in each minute, or once 
every three or four seconds. 

If you can increase the 
size of your chest a great 
deal when you take a breath, you will be able to take 
a great deal of oxygen into your body and will be likely 
to be “long-winded.” Put a tape measure around 
your body just under the arms, and see how much 
larger you can make your chest by taking a deep 
breath. An increase of two inches is large for a 




172 


BREATHING 


half-grown boy, and an increase of four inches is large 
for a grown man. 

Lungs. — Air passes from the nose or mouth, through 
the throat, into a tube called the trachea (tra/ke-a), 
or windpipe. The windpipe divides into small tubes 
called bronchi (brong'kl), and the bronchi open into 
the lungs. 

The lungs are two masses of flesh which fill most 
of the upper part of the body under the ribs. Their 

use is to supply oxygen 
to the body. They are 
full of tiny air spaces. 
When a breath is taken, 
these spaces are filled 
so full of air that the 
lungs become large, 
like a blown-up bal¬ 
loon. When a breath 
is blown out from the 
body, the air spaces 
are partly emptied. 

The walls of the air 
spaces are covered with 
capillaries through 
which blood is always flowing. While the blood is 
passing through these, the red blood cells take up 
oxygen from the air in the air spaces. The blood then 
flows through the body and carries the oxygen with 
it to all the flesh. 



Lung of a Turtle 

(Natural size.) The air cells make the inside 
of the lung look like a sponge. A man’s lung 
is like a turtle’s lung except that the air cells 
are very much smaller. 




BREATHING 


173 


A little oxygen also is taken from the air by the 
blood that flows through the skin. If the walls of 
the air spaces in the lungs were all opened and spread 
out, they would make a sheet large enough to cover 
the whole body sixty times. The blood can therefore 
take from the lungs sixty times more oxygen than it 
could get if it had to take all its oxygen from the skin. 

What the Body Does with Oxygen. — When the 
blood reaches the capillaries of the arms and legs and 
of other parts of the body, the 
oxygen leaves the red blood cells, 
and unites with food and flesh, 
and oxidizes them. The weight 
of the oxygen that the body uses 
each day is more than the weight 
of all the food and flesh that is 
oxidized. 

The oxidation within the body 
produces waste substances which 
consist of oxygen joined to food 
and flesh. They are like the 
smoke and ashes of a fire, and are harmful to the 
body. They are taken up by the blood and are 
carried away in its stream. One of the principal waste 
substances is called carbon dioxide (dl-ok'sld). This 
gas is carried to the lungs, and there is given off to 
the air spaces, and is breathed out with the breath. 
Other waste substances are given off by the skin and 
kidneys and other organs. 



Weight of Oxygen and 
of Food 

The oxygen used daily in the 
body weighs more than the 
solid food. 



174 


BREATHING 


Arterial and Venous Blood. — The same blood 
stream which carries food and oxygen also carries 
waste substances. The blood that is flowing away 
from the heart through most of the body is called 
arterial blood because it is flowing through arteries. 
The arterial blood contains an abundance of oxygen 
and only a small quantity of waste substances, and is 
bright red in color. 

The blood that is flowing from nearly all parts of 
the body toward the heart is called venous (ve'nus) 
blood, because it is flowing through veins. Most venous 
blood contains a great deal of waste substances and 
only a little oxygen, and is dark red or purple in color. 

Blood changes from arterial to venous in all the 
capillaries of the body except in those of the lungs. In 
the capillaries of the lungs the blood changes from 
venous to arterial (p. 141). 

Breathing and Life. — The fire in a stove uses up 
oxygen as fast as air passes through the draft, and 
burns very slowly when the drafts are shut. When a 
person stops breathing, the oxidation in his body goes 
on too slowly to support life, because of the lack of 
oxygen. When the oxygen in the body is nearly used 
up, a great shortness of breath is felt. All the oxygen 
that the lungs and blood can hold will not last the 
body longer than about a minute. If a person should 
not breathe for two minutes, his life would be in 
great danger. A person must breathe fifteen or 
twenty times a minute in order to feel comfortable. 


BREATHING 


175 


Breathing and Strength. — When you run hard, 
you quickly use up all the oxygen which your blood 
can carry. Then you feel short of breath and have 
to rest until the blood can take up more oxygen. Thus 
your breathing will have a great deal to do with your 
strength. You can work as hard as your breathing 
will allow. If your lungs are large and you breathe 
deeply, you will be able to run fast and do other hard 
work. One reason why physical training, athletics, 
and military drill will increase your strength, is that 
they will teach you to breathe so deeply that you will 
not get out of breath easily. 

Breathing and Health. — Your breathing has a 
great deal to do with your health. If oxidation does 
not go on properly, the waste substances of your body 
will be like the gases in a coal stove that does not burn 
well. They will be more poisonous than they should 
be, and your body will not be able to get rid of them 
easily. They will make you feel weak and dull, and 
they may make you dangerously sick. Many persons 
are weak and in poor health because they do not take 
enough oxygen into their bodies to carry on oxidation 
in the right way. 

Overeating and Oxidation. — When a person eats 
too much food, the lungs do not supply enough oxygen 
to oxidize the food properly. The poisonous waste 
matters of the body then cause headaches and back¬ 
aches, and the pains which are often called rheumatism. 
A cure for many of the aches and pains is to go 


176 


BREATHING 


without food for a meal or two, in order that the 
food that is already in the body may be oxidized. 
Another cure is to take hard exercise in order to 
increase the quantity of oxygen in the body. 

Exercise and Breathing. — The principal way by 
which you can cause the oxidation in the body to go 
on properly is by taking exercise. When the muscles 
are put to hard use, the body becomes warm, and the 
breathing is deep and fast, for a great deal of food 
and oxygen is used up. Then oxidation is perfect, just 
as it is in a stove when the fire is hot and the drafts 
are open wide. 

When a fire is once well started in a stove, and the 
drafts are nearly closed, it will burn slowly and stead¬ 
ily for some hours. The oxidation in the body does 
not need to take place rapidly all the time, but it will 
go on too slowly unless some exercise is taken two or 
three times a day. 

Deep Breathing. — Another way of making the 
oxidation in the body go on properly is by taking deep 
breaths often. After you have been sitting still for 
some time, you may feel dull and short of breath be¬ 
cause you take too little oxygen into your body. Then 
you may make yourself feel bright and comfortable 
by throwing your shoulders back and breathing deeply. 
Taking deep breaths of air will often help you to learn 
your lessons when you begin to feel dull and sleepy. 

Deep Breathing and Health. — Dust and disease 
germs are often breathed into the lungs. If deep 


BREATHING 


177 


breaths are not taken, only a part of the lungs will 
be filled. Then the germs may lie in a still corner 
of the lung. There they may grow undisturbed and 
cause a lung disease. Those who have tuberculosis 
usually have small, flat chests, and do not breathe 
deeply. If you take deep breaths several times a day, 
fresh air and blood will fill every part of the lungs, and 
disease germs will have but little chance to grow there. 
Deep breathing is one of the best of all means for keep¬ 
ing the lungs healthy and strong. 

Mouth Breathing. — The folds of the inside of the 
nose warm the air which is breathed, and strain out 
dust and disease germs from it (p. 53). The mouth 
cannot do this nearly so well as the nose can. If air 
is breathed through the mouth, cold air, dust, and dis¬ 
ease germs will pass into the throat and lungs. Those 
who breathe through their mouths are likely to catch 
colds, sore throats, and diseases of the lungs. 

Many persons think that it is natural for a child to 
breathe through his mouth. This is not so. A child 
will breathe through his nose if it is clear and open, 
and will keep his mouth closed at night as well as in 
the daytime. If you have to breathe through your 
mouth while you are at rest, go to a doctor and have 
your nose and throat treated. The most common 
cause of mouth breathing is adenoids (p. 56). 

Stooped Shoulders. — When you sit or stand with 
the shoulders bent forward, your arms will hang like 
weights upon the chest. Then you will not be able 


OV. PERS. HYG. — 12 


1 7 8 


BREATHING 


to breathe well, but will feel short of breath and un¬ 
comfortable. 

While you are writing or studying, sit up straight 
and throw your shoulders back, so that your arms 



Wrong Position at a Desk Right Position at a Desk 

When you work at a desk, sit upright and keep your shoulders thrown back. 


will be supported by the muscles of your back. Then 
you will be able to breathe freely, you will feel 
bright and active, and will be ready for hard work 
or play. 

Artificial Respiration. — When a person has been 
almost drowned, he may be brought back to life if air 
is made to pass into and out of his lungs as in breathing. 
This is called artificial respiration. If artificial respira¬ 
tion is begun within a few minutes after a drown¬ 
ing person has stopped breathing, it may save his 
life. 

Learn how to do artificial respiration, for it is easy 
to learn, and by doing it you may be able to save a 
life when no doctor is at hand. 










BREATHING 


179 




In order to do artificial respiration, prepare the res¬ 
cued person in the following way: Lay his body out 
straight on the ground, or floor, face downward. Turn 
his head to one side and place his arm under it. Kneel 
astride him over the 
upper part of his 
legs and place your 
hands on the sides 
of his body just 
above the waist line, 

— your thumbs on 
his back and your 
fingers on his sides. 

You are now in 
a position to begin 
the movements, which are two in number: 

1. Say “ Out goes the water.” As you say the 

word “ Out,” lean 
your body forward 
so that your weight 
rests on your hands. 

2. Say “ In goes 
the air.” As you 
say the word “ In,” 
throw your body 
back by pushing 
suddenly upon your 
hands. You will 
hear the air passing into the lungs as you sit upright. 


Artificial Respiration, First Movement 
Press upon the sides of the chest in order to squeeze 
the ribs together and force the air out of the lungs. 


Artificial Respiration, Second Movement 
Suddenly stop pressing upon the chest. The ribs 
spring up and draw air into the lungs. 






i8o 


BREATHING 


Make these movements while you repeat the two 
sentences over and over in a natural way. These 
movements will cause the chest of the rescued person 
to imitate the natural movements of breathing. 

Keep up the movements of artificial respiration 
until the person begins to breathe. You may have to 
do them for an hour or two before the person is out of 
danger. 

Electric Shock. — A strong shock of electricity may 
stop a person’s breathing and make him seem to be 
lifeless. Then the person may often be brought back 
to life by means of artificial respiration just as in the 
case of a person saved from drowning. 

Choking. — If a person’s windpipe is stopped up, 
we say that he choked. Some persons have a habit 
of holding pennies or buttons or other small things 
in their mouths. Sometimes a small object is sucked 
into the windpipe and cannot be taken out. It is 
dangerous to carry anything in your mouth when you 
are at work or play, for it may slip down the throat and 
cause choking. 

If any one is choking, he needs help quickly. The 
first thing to do is to hold him so that his head hangs 
down. You can hold a child up by the feet, and you 
can lay a grown person, face downward, across a 
chair with the head hanging down. 

The next thing to do is to shake the choking person, 
or slap him on the back, so as to make the object drop 
out of the windpipe. 


BREATHING 


181 


QUESTIONS 

What substance from the air is used up in a burning fire? 

What is oxidation ? 

How is the oxidation in a living body like the burning in a stove? 

What substance does breathing supply to the body? 

How much should a person be able to expand his chest in taking a 
deep breath ? 

What are the lungs? 

How does the blood get oxygen from the lungs ? 

What does the blood do with oxygen? 

What is done with oxidized substances in the body? 

What is the difference between arterial and venous blood? 

What is the cause of shortness of breath when a person runs fast ? 

How does overeating disturb the oxidation in the body ? 

What effect does alcohol have on the oxidation in the body? 

Why is it healthful to take deep breaths often? 

What harm comes from breathing through the mouth? 

What harm comes from sitting or standing with stooped shoulders ? 

Of what use is artificial respiration? 

How may artificial respiration be done? 

What should you do for a person who has been shocked by elec¬ 
tricity? 

How can you help any one who is choking ? 

For the Teacher. — Teach the subject of oxidation as the fundamental 
action in breathing, in the production of strength and heat, and in doing 
work. Show the similarity between the oxidation in the body and that in a 
stove. This similarity will help to explain the relation of oxidation to life, 
strength, and health. It will also explain the bad effects of overeating. 

Have the pupils practice artificial respiration upon one another, saying 
the sentences slowly and deliberately, and at the same time making the move¬ 
ments as directed in the text (p. 179). 


CHAPTER XXI 
FRESH AIR 

How Air Is Made Impure. — If a person stays in a 
small, closed room for an hour, a large part of the oxy¬ 
gen of the air will be used up, and its place will be taken 
by waste substances from the body. Then the air 
of the room will not be fit for breathing. If a person 
should be shut in a small air-tight room for a few hours, 
he would die from lack of oxygen. 

A lighted lamp also makes the air of a room impure, 
for it uses about as much oxygen as a man, and gives 
off nearly the same kind of waste substances. Air 
in houses may also be made impure by dust and dirt 
in the rooms, and by decaying substances in the cellars. 

Disease Germs in Foul Air. — When any one talks, 
or coughs, or sneezes, or blows the nose, tiny drops 
of mucus or saliva often fly from the nose and mouth. 
These drops of liquid contain disease germs when they 
come from some one who has a cold, or tonsillitis, or 
tuberculosis, or other disease which is catching. The 
drops soon dry and their disease germs may float in 
the air as dust. Then the next person who breathes 
the air may catch the disease. 

Many persons have sore throat, tuberculosis, or 
other diseases in a form so mild that they keep at their 
work and go among other people just as if they were 
well. These persons often give off disease germs just 

182 


FRESH AIR 


183 

as they would if they were severely sick. For this 
reason, any air which has been made impure by breath¬ 
ing is likely to have disease germs in it. 

Effects of Foul Air. — While any one is breathing 
foul air, he feels lazy and dull, and cannot do good 
work. Pupils in a close schoolroom cannot put their 
minds on their lessons. Those who breathe foul air 
day after day are likely to be weak and sickly. 

The worst effects of foul air are caused by disease 
germs which are nearly always found in it. The 
dusty air of living rooms and meeting places is likely 
to contain disease germs. The cleaning of rooms in 
which persons live and work is necessary in order to 
keep the air pure (p. 35). 

How to Know Impure Air. — You can usually tell 
foul air by its smell. Air that has been made impure 
by the breathing of persons has an unpleasant odor. 
If you can smell this when you come into a room, you 
may know the air of that room is unfit for breathing. 

After you have been in a room full of foul air for 
a few moments, you may no longer notice the odor, 
but the air will still be as harmful as when you en¬ 
tered the room. If no one could become used to the 
smell of foul air, all persons would be likely to keep 
the air of their houses pure and fresh. But because 
the sense of smell soon becomes dulled, many persons 
fail to notice when the air of their houses becomes 
impure. They often keep on breathing foul air, and 
thus do a great deal of harm to their health. 


FRESH AIR 


184 

Purity of Outdoor Air. — The way to keep the air 
of a room pure is to change it often for pure air from 
out of doors. Outdoor air is nearly always pure. 
People give off impurities from their lungs when they 
are in the open air, just as they do when they are in 
houses. But outdoors the wind supplies new air, and 
carries impurities away as fast as they are formed. 
In a closed room the air is breathed over and over 
again, and is soon made impure. 

Ventilation. — Changing the air of a room for fresh, 
outdoor air is called ventilation. Some fresh air comes 
into a room when the doors are opened, and some 
comes in through cracks in windows, doors, and floors; 
but in a well-made house the cracks are too few and 
too small to let enough fresh air into a room. 

The simplest way to ventilate a room is to open a 
window in it. But an open window may allow cold 
air to enter a room in a large stream called a draft. 
Many persons do not ventilate their rooms because 
they suppose that a draft of cool air will cause them 
to take cold. A draft will not be the cause of a cold 
if the air is fresh, for there will be no disease germs 
in it. A person may catch cold by breathing disease 
germs from the foul air of a room, whether there is 
a draft in it or not. You can easily ventilate a room 
without producing a draft. 

Warmth and Ventilation. — The air of a heated 
room is warmer near the ceiling than near the floor, 
for warm air is lighter than cold air, and rises above 


FRESH AIR 


185 



Air enters the room through cracks in the floors, and the lower parts of the win¬ 
dows and doors. Air leaves the room through the upper parts of the windows 
and doors and through the chimney. 

it. The air near the ceiling of a living room is more 
foul than the air near the floor, for breathing warms 
the air and causes it to rise. If an opening is made 
in the ceiling or near it, warm foul air will flow through 
this out of the room; but if an opening is near the 
floor, cool air will usually flow into the room. 

It is easy to ventilate a heated room by dropping 
the upper sash of a window. Warm, foul air will 
flow out above the sash, and its place will betaken 















































































i86 


FRESH AIR 


by cooler air which enters the room through cracks 
in the floors, windows, and doors. The streams of 
fresh air will be small and will spread through the room 
without causing drafts. 

Another way to ventilate a room is to raise the lower 
sash of a window. When this is done, the direction 
of the stream of air will usually be into the room, and 
drafts will sometimes be formed. The drafts maybe 
prevented by covering the opening with a sheet of 
thin muslin. The cloth will allow air to pass through 
it, but will prevent the wind from blowing through it 
in a draft. It may be tacked to a frame and set in the 
window like a fly screen. 

Ventilating Cold Rooms. — Many persons think 
that there is not so much need of ventilating their 
rooms in winter as in summer, because foul air does 
not smell so bad when it is cold as when it is warm. 
The air of a cold room will usually become impure as 
quickly as the air of a heated room, but the smell of 
bad air in a warm room is more unpleasant than in a 
cold room. Ventilate your room whether it is warmed 
or not. 

Night Air. — Many persons sleep with the doors 
and windows of their bedrooms closed because they 
think that the outdoor air is harmful at night. Do 
not be afraid of the night air. It is usually purer than 
the air during the day, for but little dust is stirred up 
during the quiet hours of the night. Keep your bed¬ 
room window open at night. 


FRESH AIR 


187 


Ventilating Bedrooms. — Some persons clean their 
bedrooms and air them every morning and then close 
them up until the next morning, thinking that the 
fresh air will last all through the night. If you sleep 
in a bedroom which is not ventilated, the air in it will 
become impure in an hour after you go to bed, and 
you will breathe foul air all the rest of the night. An 
odor of foul air in a bedroom in the morning shows 
that the air has been bad during the night. 

You cannot get ventilation enough by leaving your 
bedroom door open, for that lets in air from only an¬ 
other part of the 
house. You need 
fresh air from out¬ 
doors. Sleep with 
a window of your 
bedroom open, and 
if the room is cold, 
keep yourself warm 
by using thick bed 
covers. 

Sleeping Out¬ 
doors. — The best 
way to make sure 
of breathing pure, 
fresh air all night 
long is to sleep out¬ 
doors. A person is 

It is healthful to sleep out of doors if one is wrapped 

no more likely to up warm. 








188 


FRESH AIR 


catch cold by sleeping out of doors than by taking a 
ride. Many weak persons sleep on porches for the 
sake of their lungs. They cover up warmly and wear 
hoods on their heads, and in the morning they wake 
up bright and refreshed. 

QUESTIONS 

What are some.of the causes of the impure air in rooms? 

How does a lighted lamp make the air of a room impure ? 

What harm does impure air do to a person ? 

What are some of the diseases that may be caught from foul air? 

How may impure air be distinguished from pure air? 

How may the air in a room be kept pure ? 

What is ventilation ? 

How may a room be ventilated without a draft ? 

How would you use a screen of muslin to prevent a draft*? 

Why do cold rooms need as much ventilation as warm rooms ? 

Why should a person sleep with his bedroom window open ? 

Why is it well for persons having weak lungs to sleep in the open 
air? 

For the Teacher. — Do not go too deeply into the reasons for the depressing 
effects of foul air, for the explanation is too complicated for a pupil to follow. 
The explanation also involves the subject of the regulation of the heat of the 
body. Teach how to detect foul air, and how to ventilate by means of open 
windows. 

Teach the subject of ventilation largely by the example of daily and hourly 
attention to the windows and the heating system of the schoolroom. 


CHAPTER XXII 


BODY HEAT 

The Warmth of the Body. — The body warms itself 
by the slow burning or oxidation that is always going 
on within it (p. 169). The body produces about as 
much heat as two burn¬ 
ing candles. Some parts 
of the body make more 
heat than other parts. 

The muscles and the 
liver make more heat 
than the bones and the 
skin. Yet all parts of 
the body are nearly 
equal in warmth, for 
the blood stream warms 
them as it passes 
through the flesh like 
hot water through a 
radiator in a house. 

The Skin and Warmth. — The feeling of warmth 
is mostly in the skin. If your skin is red with blood, 
it will be warm and you will feel warm all over. If 
your skin is pale and contains only a little blood, it 

189 



Two Burning Candles 

They produce about as much heat as the body 
of a grown man who is doing light work. 




BODY HEAT 



190 

will be cold and you will feel cold all over, even if the 
inside of your body is too warm. If you feel cold or 
chilly, you may become warm by doing something 
that will force the blood through the skin, such as 
taking exercise, or rubbing the skin. You do not 
mind cold weather if a good supply of blood flows 
through the skin. 


You will not mind the cold if you wear enough clothing to keep all parts of your 
body warm and dry. 

Clothing. — Clothes do not produce heat, but they 
keep the body warm by preventing the loss of the 
heat which the body produces. You cannot become 
hardened to cold weather by wearing thin clothes, or 
going without a cap, or warm shoes, or mittens, and 
then trying to stand the pain of a cold skin. If you 
do this, you will weaken your body. 




BODY HEAT 


191 

You will not become used to cold if you wrap your¬ 
self up in very thick clothes, for the skin will not have 
a chance to touch the cold air. But if you exercise or 
work hard in the cold air, the warm blood will flow 
through the skin and you will keep yourself warm with¬ 
out needing to bundle up with thick clothes. 

How the Body Is Cooled. — The body is always 
producing heat, and would soon become too warm 
if it did not lose heat. It is cooled by the air and by 
the perspiration. 

The air is nearly always cooler than the body, and 
so cools the skin by its touch. The body loses heat 
rapidly on a cold day, and thick clothes may then 
be needed to prevent the loss of too much heat. 

If the day is very warm, the air alone may not take 
heat from the skin fast enough to keep the body cool. 
The skin then produces an extra amount of perspira¬ 
tion, which cools the body in the same way that a 
sprinkling with water would cool it. A person is not 
likely to become overheated on a hot day if he per¬ 
spires freely. 

Sunstroke. — If the stomach, or lungs, or skin, or 
other part of the body is out of order, the perspira¬ 
tion may not be formed freely, even when the day is 
hot. The heat will then remain in the body and will 
cause faintness and weakness. If a person is made 
sick by heat, we say that he has a sunstroke. 

If you feel faint from the heat, lie down in a cool spot, 
and cool the head by bathing it with cold water. 


192 


BODY HEAT 


Cold Hands and Feet. — If the hands or feet are 
cold, wrapping them up may not always make them 
warm, for the covering neither makes heat, nor causes 
blood to flow through the cold part. But you can 
warm any part of the body by doing something which 

will make a great deal 
of blood flow through 
it. If the ears are cold, 
you can warm them by 
rubbing them briskly. 
You can warm your 
hands by clapping them 
together, or by whip¬ 
ping your arms hard 
around your back. You 
can warm your feet by 
stamping them on the 
ground. In these ways 

You can warm your hands quickly by swing- Y 0U make the 

ing them and whipping them hard around your warm blood flow 
shoulders. 

through the cold part. 

Frozen Parts. — When a finger, or toe, or ear is 
frozen, it will usually get well if it is thawed very slowly. 
Do not take a person who has a frozen part into a 
warm room, but keep him in a room where the air is 
cold. Then warm the room slowly. Put the frozen 
part in cold water and let it thaw slowly while the 
water grows warmer with the room. Another good 
way to thaw a frozen part is to rub it with snow. 



Warming the Hands 




BODY HEAT 


193 


Heating Houses. — The temperature of the body 
of a healthy person is about 98^° F. When the air is as 
warm as the body, a person feels extremely warm and 
uncomfortable, for the air cannot take the heat away 
from the body. The body feels most comfortable 
when the temperature of the air of a room is about 
70° F. If the temperature of the air of a room is less 
than 6o° F., the room will feel too cold for comfort. 

Pure Air and Heating Houses. — Many persons 
forget about the purity of the air when they heat their 
houses. They close their windows to keep the warm 
air in the room and the cold air out. Then the air 
soon becomes foul and unfit for breathing. A heated 
room needs ventilation (p. 184). 

A fireplace will ventilate a room as well as heat it, 
for the fire will cause a large stream of air to flow from 
the room up the chimney. A stove in a room will 
not help the ventilation much, for its drafts will take 
only a small quantity of air from the room. 

There are three ways of carrying heat from a cellar 
furnace through a house : (1) by means of hot water; 
(2) by means of steam; and (3) by means of hot air. 
Neither hot water nor steam used to heat a room will 
ventilate it, for neither will cause air to flow either into 
the room or out of it. Hot-air heaters take fresh air 
from out of doors, heat it, and send it to the rooms; 
and so they ventilate houses while they heat them. 

Moisture in the Air. — If air contains all the vapor 
of water that it can hold, we say that it is moist. If 


OV. PERS. HYG. — 13 


194 


BODY HEAT 


it contains only one third or one half as much water as 
it can hold, we say that it is dry. Warm air can hold 
a great deal more water than cold air. Moist air that 
is freezing cold becomes dry air when it is warmed 
to a comfortable temperature. For this reason the 
air in heated houses is often too dry for health. 

When you warm a room, keep a pan of water in 
the furnace, or on the register, radiator, or stove, in 
order that its vapor may make the air moist. 

Oil and Gas Stoves. — Most stoves which burn oil 
or gas have no pipes running to the chimney, and so 
they pour harmful gases into the room. They are 
not safe unless the room is kept well ventilated. They 
can be made safe by being fitted with pipes which 
will carry the gases up the chimney. 

Gas Poisoning. — Coal stoves sometimes give off 
a poisonous gas. When it is breathed, it unites with 
the red blood cells and keeps them from taking oxygen 
from the air. This gas is also found in the illuminat¬ 
ing gas which is burned for lighting houses, and is 
sometimes formed by stoves which burn oil or char¬ 
coal. It can usually be recognized by an unpleasant 
smell. Air with the least smell of the gas is dangerous. 

Effects of Alcohol on the Heat of the Body. — An 
excuse that is sometimes given for taking strong drink 
is that it seems to make the drinker feel warm. It 
does this because it causes a great deal of blood to 
flow through the skin; but it really makes a person 
cold because it brings the blood to the surface of the 


BODY HEAT 


*95 


body where it loses its heat. A person is able to stand 

the cold better when he lets strong drink alone. 

- 

QUESTIONS 


What warms the body ? 

How are all parts of the body kept equally warm? 

How does exercise help the body to endure cold? 

In what part of the body is the greatest feeling of heat and cold ? 

What effect does the perspiration have upon the heat of the body? 

Why does a person not get overheated when he is perspiring a 
great deal? 

What should be done for a person who has a sunstroke ? 

If your hands are cold when you are far away from a fire, how may 
you warm them ? 

How should you care for a frozen part of the body? 

What degree of heat is the most comfortable in a living room? 

Why should moisture be added to the air of a heated room ? 

How can you make the air of a heated room moist ? 

What effect may a burning oil stove or gas stove have upon the 
air in a house ? 

What is the danger from the gas from a coal stove, or a leaking 
gas jet ? 

What effect does alcohol have upon the heat of the body? 


For the Teacher. — Compare the production of heat and its distribution 
through the body with a hot-water system of heating a house. The com¬ 
parison explains why clapping the hands together warms them. Refer to 
the subject of clothing, in Chapter V. 

Teach that the feelings are the best guide in judging the amount of clothing 
needed ; but that one must think ahead and prepare for changes in the weather 
and in one’s occupation. 

Teach the use of the perspiration in cooling the body; and that sunstroke 
will not occur as long as one perspires freely. 

Teach the subject of proper warmth in a room by watching the thermometer 
and regulating the warmth by attention to the heating and ventilating systems. 

Teach the pupils to read a thermometer, and to know the meaning of the 
various degrees of freezing, proper room warmth, body temperature, a fever, and 
boiling. 


CHAPTER XXIII 

COLDS 

Infectious Diseases. — The most common kinds of 
sickness among children and young persons are those 
infectious diseases which are usually called colds and 
fevers. They are caused by living disease germs; 
are caught from other persons; and are spread princi¬ 
pally by means of the waste substances from the bodies 
of the sick (p. 18). 

Fever. — When disease germs grow in the flesh, they 
usually make the body too warm. The natural tem¬ 
perature of the body is about 98-J 0 F. A temperature 
of the body which is warmer than 98J 0 F. is called a 
fever. It is a sign of sickness, for it is usually caused 
by disease germs growing in the body. A person whose 
temperature is warmer than ioi° F. will usually feel too 
sick to work. If the temperature is warmer than 103° 
F., the person will be too sick to sit up, and with a 
temperature of 104° F. he will be dangerously sick. 

Signs of an Infectious Disease. — A list of common 
infectious diseases is given on pages 14 and 15. A 
person who is beginning to have one of these diseases 
will usually feel weak and sick, and will not want to 

196 


COLDS 


197 


eat. He will have pains in his head and back, and his 
tongue will be dry and coated. If a person has these 
feelings, one of the first things to do is to take his 
temperature. If he has a fever, he probably has an 
infectious disease, and needs to do two things: 

1. To take care of himself so that he may get well 
quickly. 

2. To try to keep from spreading his disease to 
others. 

What a Cold Is. — If a person is mildly sick and has 
little or no fever, his sickness is often called a cold. 
There is a common form of infectious sickness, called 
a common cold , or a cold in the head , in which the nose 
is sore and there is sneezing and coughing. This dis¬ 
ease is nearly always mild, and yet a person who has 
it feels as he would if he were coming down with a dis¬ 
ease which is dangerous to life, such as influenza, pneu¬ 
monia, measles, scarlet fever, or typhoid fever. What 
is called a common cold may be a mild form of a danger¬ 
ous disease. Many persons who are beginning to have 
pneumonia or other dangerous diseases do not take care 
of themselves, because they suppose they have only 
common colds and will soon get well. Those who do 
not take care of their common colds not only endanger 
their own lives, but they may spread dangerous dis¬ 
eases to many other persons. 

Cause of a Cold. — A cold is caught from other per¬ 
sons who have colds, just as measles is caught from some 


198 


COLDS 


one who has measles. Many persons suppose that the 
principal causes of taking cold are cold and dampness, 
for they often have colds after they have been sitting 

in a cold wind 
or after their 
clothes have 
been wet. One 
reason why 
dampness and 
cold air tend to 
bring on colds 
is that many 
people close 
their doors and 
windows during 
bad weather, 
and then stay in 
rooms where the air is foul and contains disease germs. 
Few persons have colds in summer because then they 
usually keep their living rooms and houses open and 
well ventilated. 

Another reason why cold air and dampness help to 
bring on colds is that they weaken the body, and then 
the white blood cells are not able to destroy disease 
germs easily (p. 137). But the white blood cells are 
often weakened by many other things besides cold and 
dampness. They are weakened by wrong eating, by 
overwork, and by loss of sleep more often than they are 
harmed by cold and dampness. Colds are common 





COLDS 


199 


among those who stay indoors and do not become cold 
and wet at all. 

Weakening the body and the white-blood cells will 
not cause a cold if disease germs do not enter the body. 
The men who were with Admiral Peary and other 
Arctic explorers were often wet, and cold, and over¬ 
worked, and yet they were free from colds while they 
were in Arctic lands, because in those places they did 
not meet any one who had a cold or other sickness. 
Yet the same explorers began to have colds as soon 
as they reached a town on their way home, because then 
they took disease germs from other persons. 

Drafts and Colds. — The wind blowing on the body 
out of doors seldom causes a sickness, because the out¬ 
door air is almost free from disease germs. A draft 
of cold outdoor air, blowing across a room which is full 
of warm, foul air, may injure a person’s body slightly, 
and so may prevent it from killing the disease germs 
which enter the lungs from the foul air. But if the air 
of a room is pure and free from disease germs, a draft 
of cold air blowing across it will not harm the body 
more than the wind out of doors would harm it. Many 
persons fail to ventilate their rooms because they are 
afraid that a draft will make them catch cold. Foul, 
impure air in a room is many times more dangerous 
than a draft of pure air in it. 

How Disease Germs Are Spread. — Those who have 
colds give off disease germs with everything which comes 
from their noses and throats. The germs are found in 


200 


COLDS 


tiny drops of saliva and mucus which are blown from 
the nose and mouth during coughing, sneezing, loud 
talking, and laughing. Hold a cold mirror in front of 
your mouth while you cough. A spray of small drops 
of saliva and mucus will be blown from the mouth, and 
will fall on the glass where you can see them easily. 
These drops will contain disease germs if you have a 
cold. 

Coughing and sneezing spread colds and other in¬ 
fectious diseases. A person who coughs or sneezes 

near you is likely to 
blow disease germs into 
the air which you 
breathe. It is a good 
rule that a pupil who 
coughs and sneezes shall 
be sent home from school. 

' ' Some states and cities 

Sneezing and Coughing Spread Dis-have laws that all per- 
EASES sons shall cover their 

Hold a handkerchief to your nose and mouth 

when you cough or sneeze. noses and mouths when 



they sneeze in public places. 

Infectious diseases are spread by means of air which 
is dusty and foul. Disease germs which are coughed, 
or sneezed, or spit out from the body may float in the air 
as dust, and may be taken into the bodies of those who 
breathe the air. Spitting on the floor may spread dis¬ 
eases, for when the mucus is dried, its disease germs rise 
with the dust of the room. Good ventilation and 



COLDS 


201 


cleanliness of rooms and floors are necessary in order 
to keep colds from spreading. 

Soiled dishes and toilet articles spread diseases. If 
a person has a cold, disease germs will be found on 
everything that is soiled with mucus from his nose 
and mouth. They will be on his handkerchiefs and 
towels; on his dishes, napkins, and drinking cups; 
on his bedclothes; and on pencils which he touches to 
his mouth. Cleanliness of all these things is necessary 
in order to keep colds and other diseases from spreading. 

Keeping Colds from Spreading. — If you have a cold, 
you have caught it from some one else who has a cold; 
and you may give it to another person unless you take 
care to keep it from spreading. There are two things 
to do in order to prevent the spread of a cold which you 
may have: 

1. Keep Away from Other Persons. Stay away 
from school and parties, and from other places where 
crowds meet. Stay at home if you can; but keep so 
far away from others that you do not cough, or sneeze, 
or laugh, or talk loud into their faces. Five feet is 
usually a safe distance. 

2. Catch and Destroy All the Mucus and Other Mat¬ 
ter That Comes from Your Nose and Mouth. Have 
handkerchiefs, towels, and dishes for your own use; 
and do not let any one else use them until they have 
been well washed. Do not handle anything that may 
be used by other persons. Do not spit on the floor or 
pavement. Use a handkerchief when you blow your 


202 


COLDS 


nose or clear your throat (p. 54). Hold a handker¬ 
chief to your nose and mouth when you cough or 
sneeze. Take a clean handkerchief as soon as one is 
soiled. 

What to Do for a Cold. — A cold will last as long as 
its living germs grow in the body, and will end when the 
disease germs stop growing. Medicines will not kill 
the disease germs, or keep them from growing. Medi¬ 
cines which stop a cough often do harm, for the object 
of the cough is to remove mucus and disease germs 
from the body. There are four simple things for a per¬ 
son who has a cold to do: 

1. Rest, in order that the body may use all its 
strength in overcoming the disease germs and their 
poisons. 

2. Keep the sick room clean and ventilate it, in 
order that no disease germs may remain in it. 

3. Keep the nose and throat and all the rest of the 
body clean, in order to get rid of as many disease 
germs as possible. 

4. Eat little food, but drink plenty of water in order 
that the kidneys and other organs may remove the 
poisons of the sickness rapidly. 

How to Avoid Taking Cold. — If you are well, there 
are two principal things to do in order to avoid taking 
cold: 

1. Keep the germs of colds out of your body. Keep 
the nose and mouth clean. Have everything clean 


COLDS 


203 


which touches the nose and mouth. Breathe air which 
is pure, and keep away from those who have colds, and 
from places in which the air is foul and dusty. 

2. Do those things which will help to make the body 
strong and healthy, in order that it may destroy the 
disease germs which enter it. Eat properly, take 
proper exercise, and keep the body comfortably warm. 

Disease of the Lungs, — Pneumonia is a name which 
is given to any disease in which the disease germs grow 
in the lungs and cause the air sacs to become filled 
with solid or liquid matter. Nearly all forms of pneu¬ 
monia are infectious, and may be spread from the sick 
to other persons by means of the mucus coughed up 
from the lungs. Many colds are caused by the same 
kind of germs which would produce pneumonia if they 
should reach the lungs. 

Influenza, or grippe, usually begins like a common 
cold, and a person who has it may spread it to others 
before he becomes sick enough to stop work. A great 
epidemic of influenza spread over almost all the world 
in 1918 and 1919, and caused more deaths than any 
other known epidemic in history. If every person 
who had influenza had been sick abed from the begin¬ 
ning of his sickness, the disease would not have spread. 
But many persons who had the disease mildly went 
among others while they sneezed, and coughed, and 
spread their germs to others. Influenza shows the 
need of taking care to prevent the spread of every 
disease which looks like a cold. 


204 


COLDS 


QUESTIONS 

What is an infectious disease? 

Name some common infectious diseases. 

What are some of the signs of an infectious disease ? 

What is the cause of fever? 

How can you tell that a person has fever ? 

What is a common cold ? What is its cause ? 

Name some dangerous diseases which may seem like a common 
cold when they begin. 

What have cold air and dampness to do with catching cold? 

How do the germs of a cold leave the body? 

How may sneezing and coughing spread a cold ? 

How may soiled towels and handkerchiefs spread colds? 

Give some rules for preventing colds from spreading. 

How should a person use a handkerchief in preventing the spread 
of a cold which he may have? 

If you had a cold, what should you do for it? 

How can you keep yourself from catching cold? 

What is pneumonia? influenza? 

For the Teacher. — Teach the subject of infectious diseases from the stand¬ 
point of the seed, rather than from that of the soil — as follows: 

1. Immunity of the soil — the body — to the growth of disease germs 
which enter it comes principally from previous vaccination or attacks of disease; 
and secondarily, from vigor and strength of the body. 

2. If seeds or germs of disease become planted in the body of any person, 
they are likely to grow and produce a cold or a fever, even if that person is 
strong and vigorous. 

3. The principal means of defense against most disease germs consists in 
preventing the germs from entering the body. 

4. A cold is a name loosely given to nearly every kind of infectious disease, 
if the sickness is mild. 

5- Drafts, coldness, dampness, and fatigue help to bring on colds and 
other infectious diseases by preparing the “ soil ” for the disease germs. 

6. A person with a cold or other infectious disease is likely to spread it to 
others. Teach pupils to keep away from others when they have a cold or fever. 

7. The most impressive teaching consists in inspecting and questioning 
every child who appears to be sick, and in sending it home if it has signs of a 
cold or fever. This is the duty of the school nurse and physician. 


CHAPTER XXIV 
SOME COMMON FEVERS 

Children’s Diseases. — Measles, German measles, 
chicken pox, and whooping cough are infectious fevers 
which children often have before they are grown. Very 
few persons can take any of these diseases a second 
time. Many persons let their little children take them 
so that they will be free from them during the rest of 
their lives. This might be proper if the diseases were 
always mild and harmless. But they are often danger¬ 
ous, and thousands of deaths are caused by them each 
year in the United States. Those who have them are 
likely to catch diseases of the lungs, such as bron¬ 
chitis (brong-kTtis) and pneumonia. Nearly all this 
danger and suffering could be prevented if everybody 
would try to keep the diseases from spreading. 

Measles. — Measles is a fever which many persons 
think is a mild, harmless disease; but it often causes 
pneumonia and ear diseases, such as earache, running 
ears, and deafness. Measles can be known by the 
red spots which appear on the skin of the sick person. 
But when the spots can be seen, the disease is half over. 
The sickness of measles has two stages. Its first stage 
is like a cold in the head, which lasts about five days 
before the spots appear, and during all that time a 


205 


206 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


fever is present. The second stage begins when the 
spots break out, and is often the only stage in which 
anything is done to prevent the spread of the disease. 

Measles is spread in the same way that colds are 
spread (p. 199). The disease at first is often supposed 
to be only a common cold, and a child in the first stage 
often goes among other children, sneezing and cough¬ 
ing and blowing mucus into their faces, and spreading 
disease germs among them before the real nature of 
the sickness is known. Measles is usually caught from 
other children while they seem to have only a cold. 

Boards of Health. — Many persons do not know how 
to prevent the spread of measles and other infectious 
diseases, and many others do not try to do so because 
they are careless. Nearly every state, city, and town 
has a board of health whose duty it is to compel all per¬ 
sons to help in preventing infectious diseases. Many 
boards of health employ doctors and nurses to visit the 
homes of the sick and to teach the people about measles 
and other diseases, and how to prevent them from 
spreading. 

Reporting Measles. — If a board of health would 
prevent the spread of measles, it must know who has 
the disease. It is the rule of a board of health that 
doctors, teachers, and parents shall report the names 
and addresses of every person who has measles, and 
who is in their care. One reason why the spread of 
measles is not stopped is that many persons do not 
know the meaning and the danger of a cold; and so 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


207 


they do not report measles until the red spots cover 
the body and the sick person has already spread the 
disease to others. The report has the most value when 
it is made as soon as the sick person begins to show signs 
of the first stage of the disease. 

Quarantine, or Isolation. — When a case of measles 
is reported, a doctor or nurse from the board of health 
visits the sick person and tells the parents or nurse 
about the rules for preventing the disease from spread¬ 
ing. Many states and cities have printed pamphlets 
which describe measles and other diseases and give the 
rules for their prevention. Ask your board of health 
for a copy of the one on measles. 

The first rule is that the sick person shall be placed 
in a room apart from the rest of the family. Keeping 
a sick person away from others who have not had the 
disease is called quarantine (kwor'an-ten), or isola¬ 
tion (l-so-la'shun). The doctor or nurse will place 
a sign on the house stating that a sick person is quaran¬ 
tined, or isolated, there, and forbidding' visitors to go 
into the house. 

Disinfection. — The second rule of the board of 
health is that disease germs which come from the sick 
person shall be caught and destroyed. The germs are 
found in the mucus and saliva and other substances 
that come from the nose and mouth of the sick person. 
If these substances are destroyed, as described on page 
201, disease germs are not likely to escape from the sick 


room. 


208 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


Destroying disease germs in a substance is called 
disinfection. Cleanliness is the best method of disin¬ 
fection, for bathing, washing, and scrubbing remove 
and destroy disease germs, besides removing dirt. Sub¬ 
stances, called disinfectants , that will kill disease germs 
are often added to the wash water. Some common dis¬ 
infectants are carbolic acid, for'malin, and chloride of 
lime. 

Contacts. — Those who have caught measles will 
come down with the disease within two weeks after 
they have taken the germs into their bodies. One who 
has been with a person having an infectious disease 
is called a contact. It is a rule of boards of health that 
contacts who have not had measles shall be watched 
for two weeks and shall be isolated at the first sign of 
sickness. The object of this rule is to find new cases 
as soon as they begin to be sick and before they spread 
the disease to others. 

Sore Throat. — There are four common infectious 
diseases in which the throat is sore: 

1. A common cold. 

2. Tonsillitis. 

3. Diphtheria. 

4. Scarlet fever. 

Diphtheria. — Diphtheria is one of the most danger¬ 
ous forms of sore throat. It is also one of the most 
common of severe diseases. It is caused by diphtheria 
germs which grow on the tonsils and back part of the 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


209 


throat, and produce a thick, white coating on the parts. 
The germs also produce a dangerous poison which goes 
through the body with the blood, and may cause death. 

Whenever a person has a sore throat, diphtheria is a 
disease to think about. It may be recognized in two 
ways: 

1. By seeing the coating in the throat. 

2. By finding the diphtheria germs. 


Examining the Throat. - 

from diphtheria and other 
throat troubles because 
they were afraid to let any 
one look into their throats 
in order to see what disease 
they had. When a doctor 
examines your throat, open 
your mouth wide and let 
him press your tongue down 
so that he can look into the 
back part of your throat. 

Cultures. — A doctor 
who examines your throat 
will rub a small swab of 
cotton over your tonsils in 
order to pick up any dis¬ 
ease germs which may be 
there. He will then plant 
the germs in a glass tube on 


Many children have died 



Examining the Throat 
The tongue must usually be pressed 
down in order to let the tonsils and back 
part of the throat be seen. This may 
be done with a clean spoon handle. 


OV. PERS. HYG. — 14 




210 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 



A Culture Tube 

The tube contains a substance on which disease germs can grow. A doctor rubs 
the swab over a diseased part (throat) and then over the substance in the tube. 
The disease germs grow in the tube and multiply until they can be easily seen. 

a substance on which they will grow readily. If diphtheria 
germs are in the throat, they will grow in the tube and 
multiply to great numbers in a few hours. They may 
then be easily seen with a microscope. A tube of grow¬ 
ing germs is called a culture. The rule is that a cul¬ 
ture shall be made from germs taken from the throat 
of every person who has spots or a coating on his ton¬ 
sils or in his throat. Boards of health support labora¬ 
tories in which the cultures will be examined free. 

Antitoxin. — If a substance called diphtheria anti- 
tox'in is given to a person who has diphtheria, it will 
overcome the poisons of the diphtheria germs which 
have been in his body. If it is given to a well per¬ 
son, it will prevent diphtheria germs from growing, 
if any should enter his body. It is so valuable in cur- 





SOME COMMON FEVERS 


211 


ing and preventing diphtheria that many states and 
cities supply it free. 

Rules for Preventing Diphtheria. — Boards of health 
have rules that all cases of diphtheria shall be reported, 
and that strict quarantine, or isolation, and disinfection 
shall be carried out, as in measles (p. 207). 

Diphtheria Carriers. — Germs of diphtheria some¬ 
times continue to grow in the nose and throat for weeks 
after the sick person has become well. A well person 
who has the germs of diphtheria growing in his body is 
called a carrier , and can spread the disease as readily 
as one who is sick. Most persons who have diph¬ 
theria catch the disease from carriers. The rule of 
most boards of health is that a diphtheria carrier shall 
be isolated as long as cultures from his throat show 
diphtheria germs. 

The germs in a carrier usually grow very near the 
surface of an unhealthy part, such as an enlarged tonsil. 
The best way to get rid of the germs in a carrier is to 
remove the tonsils or to heal the unhealthy part. 

Scarlet Fever. — Scarlet fever usually begins with 
sore throat, vomiting, and a fever. In a few hours the 
skin becomes covered with fine red spots, and at the end 
of the sickness the skin peels off in coarse scales and 
flakes. The disease is as dangerous as diphtheria, and 
its germs spread in the same way. Boards of health, 
therefore, have rules that cases of this , disease shall be 
reported, and quarantined, or isolated in the same way 
as those of diphtheria. 


212 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


Whooping Cough. — Whooping cough is an infectious 
disease in which the sick person has spells of coughing 
until he is out of breath. He then takes a breath 
suddenly and with a whooping noise. The disease is 
sometimes dangerous to life, but it is often so mild that 
it seems like a common cold. If a child has spells of 
coughing, and also other signs of a cold, whooping cough 
is to be suspected. Boards of health have rules that 
cases of whooping cough shall be reported and isolated 
like those of measles. 

Diseases of the Intestine. — Most forms of stomach 
ache and diarrhoea are caused by disease germs which 
grow in the intestine. They are often spread by food 
which has been handled by diseased persons, and by 
water which contains sewage. Their germs are found 
in the discharges which pass from the intestines and 
kidneys of the sick. If a small quantity of these dis¬ 
charges is swallowed with food and drink, they may 
cause the disease. Three common means of spreading 
these discharges to food and water are: 

1. The dirty hands of careless persons (p. 105). 

2. Sewage (p. 116). 

3. House flies. 

Insects and Diseases. — Several infectious fevers 
are spread by insects. Two common insects which 
often spread diseases are house flies and mosquitoes. 

House Flies. — House flies crawl over slops, sewage, 
and garbage heaps. There they pick up disease germs 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


213 



The Underside of a House Fly 



Foot of a House Fly 


(Magnified 5 times.) A house fly is 
covered with coarse hairs which catch 
hold of dirt and disease germs. 


(Magnified 200 times.) A fly cannot 
clean the dirt from its rough feet and 
legs. 


on their feet and bodies. The flies then come into 
kitchens and leave the germs on dishes and food. 
Typhoid fever, tuberculosis, and diphtheria are some 
of the diseases which may be spread by house flies. 
One reason why fewer persons have stomach ache and 
typhoid fever in winter than in summer is that there 
are very few flies in dwelling houses in winter. 

• A great deal of sickness and a great number of deaths 
may be prevented by putting fly screens in doors and 
windows so as to keep flies out of houses and away from 
food. It would be a great deal better to get rid of all 
house flies. 

How to Get Rid of Flies. — House flies hatch from 
eggs which are laid in manure piles, garbage heaps, and 
other collections of decaying substances. The young 
flies look like worms and are called maggots. Each 






214 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


maggot is a young fly. It takes about two weeks for 
an egg to become a full-grown fly. No flies could grow 



A fly lays eggs from which maggots hatch; the maggots turn to pupae from 
which full-grown flies come. 


if all manure piles and garbage heaps were cleaned up 
at least once a week. There would soon be very few 
house flies left if all persons who keep cows and horses 
should take care of their stables, yards, and manure 
piles. 

Malaria and Mos¬ 
quitoes. — Malaria is 
one of the most com¬ 
mon of all infectious 
diseases in some parts 
of the world. It is 
caused by disease 
germs which grow in 
the red blood cells of 
a sick person. The 



Mosquito Eggs and Wigglers 

(Natural size.) Compare with the 
illustration following. 






SOME COMMON FEVERS 




germs are carried 
from the sick to 
other persons by 
mosquitoes. Not 
all kinds of mos¬ 
quitoes can carry 
the germs, but the 
kinds which do 
carry them are 
often found with 
the harmless ones. 
Yellow fever is an¬ 
other disease which 
is spread by mos- 


Mosquito, Eggs, and Wiggler 
(M agnified 5 times.) 


niiitnpe Rns rrlc A m <> s <luito lays eggs on water, wigglers hatch from 

qunucb. 111c uuctrub the eggs and live in the water; and finalIy tvrn 

of health of many into winged mosquitoes. 

places, such as Panama, have entirely prevented ma¬ 
laria and yellow fever by getting rid of mosquitoes. 

Mosquitoes hatch 
from eggs which are 
laid in stagnant 
water. The young 
are called wigglers. 
In summer they may 
often be seen tum¬ 
bling about in rain 
barrels. One way to 

Tr w _ _ get rid of mosquitoes 

A Ditch in Which Millions of Mosquitoes ° ^ 

Hatched and Grew is to empty out all 






2 l6 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


rain barrels and other collections of dirty water, and 
to drain marshes and pools, so that there will be no 
places in which the young insects may grow. Another 
way is to cover the water with a little kerosene or 
other thin oil in order to kill the wigglers. 

QUESTIONS 

What is the danger from whooping cough, measles, and other mild 
children’s diseases? 

When a person begins to come down with measles, what are the 
first signs of the disease ? 

When is a child who has measles most likely to spread the disease ? 

If you had measles, what rules would the board of health make you 
follow ? 

What is quarantine? isolation? 

What is disinfection f 

If you had measles, how could you destroy the disease germs which 
leave your body ? 

What is a measles contact f 

If you had never had measles, but had played with a child who has 
the disease, what rule would the board of health make you follow ? 

Of what four common infectious diseases is sore throat a sign ? 

What is diphtheria ? 

What can usually be seen in the throat of a person who has diph¬ 
theria? 

What is a culture? When should a throat culture be taken? 

Of what use is diphtheria antitoxin? 

What is a diphtheria carrier ? 

What are the signs of scarlet fever? of whooping cough? 

What are some of the common causes of stomach ache and diar¬ 
rhoea? 

How do house flies spread diseases ? * 

Where are house flies hatched ? 

What do young house flies look like ? 

How can people get rid of house flies ? 


SOME COMMON FEVERS 


217 


What diseases do mosquitoes spread ? 

Where do young mosquitoes live ? What do they look like ? 
How can people get rid of mosquitoes ? 


For the Teacher. — This chapter deals with some common diseases which 
illustrate the fundamental principles in the control of infectious diseases. The 
principles to be emphasized are as follows: 

1. Reporting diseases to the health officer, or board of health. 

2. Isolation, or keeping the sick apart and away from the well. 

3. Contacts and their control. Most contacts may be discovered, and 
if they are controlled, they will not spread a disease while they are coming 
down with it. 

4. Examination of the throat. Many common diseases may be discovered 
early if the throat is examined. Teach the pupils to allow their throats to 
be examined, and to permit a tongue depressor to be used. Take a clean 
one for each pupil. 

5. Cultures, and how to take them and what they are likely to show. 

6. Antitoxin and its value in diphtheria, both for cure and for prevention. 

7. Carriers, what they are and how they are dangerous. 

8. Diarrhoeas and their infectiousness, and their spread by sick persons who, 
after going to the toilet, do not wash their hands. 

9. Flies and mosquitoes and their relation to diseases. 

These several topics cannot be.taught to young pupils in one lesson. They 
may be taught most effectively by using known cases of sick pupils, when their 
diseases develop. The classroom teaching will supplement the work of the 
school nurse and doctor. 


CHAPTER XXV 
EXERCISE 


Muscles. — The motions of the body are made by 
means of muscles. An animal’s muscles are its lean 
meat. Most of the flesh of a person’s body is muscle 
that looks like the lean meat of an animal. Over 
half of a man’s body is composed of muscle. 

Each muscle is made of cells, or tiny strings of flesh, 
which are reddish in color. The cells are bound into 
bundles by a small quantity of connective tissue (tish'u), 
which is white. Red bundles of muscle cells and white 

threads of connective 
tissue may be easily seen 
with the naked eye on a 
piece of beefsteak. The 
separate cells and threads 
cannot be seen without 
a microscope. 

Muscle cells in meat 
are soft and tender, but 
connective tissue threads 
are firm and tough. If 
meat contains a great deal of connective tissue, it will 
be tough. 

The muscles of the arms and legs are large at their 

218 



Muscles and Tendons of a Cat’s Leg 
A muscle pulling on the tendons bends the toes. 




EXERCISE 


219 


upper ends and taper toward their lower parts, where 
they end in white cords. The cords are like smooth 
strings and are composed of connective tissue. Some 
of them are as large as lead pencils and are as strong as 
though they were made of silk. They are fastened to 
the parts of the body that are to be moved. 

Cords may easily be felt on the front of the wrist 
and also on the back of the knee when the leg is bent. 
Another name for cords is ten¬ 
dons. 

Most of the muscles of the 
face are in the form of flat 
sheets and have no cords fast 
to them. Nearly all of them 
are fastened to the lips and 
cheeks, or to the skin around 
the eyes. They change the 
appearance of the face in 
laughing and crying. 

How a Muscle Acts. —When Face Muscles in Action 
a muscle acts, it swells out its The muscles of the face move the 

lips and eyelids and pucker the 
middle part and shortens itself Skin of the face in laughing and 

and thus it pulls upon its cord 

and moves whatever is fastened to the cord. 

Grasp your arm above the elbow, and bend the arm 
as far and as strongly as you can. The muscle which 
bends the elbow will now feel hard and swollen. 

Let the arm drop to your side. The muscle will 
now feel soft and flat. 




220 


EXERCISE 


Muscles that are used in a proper way grow large 
and strong. Athletes practice for hours each day in 
order to increase the size and strength of their muscles. 



Arm Muscles of the Right 
Arm at Rest 



Arm Muscles in Action 


When a musele acts, it swells and becomes hard. 


Bone. — Muscles are built upon a framework of 
bone. The principal use of bones is to support the 
soft flesh, just as beams support a house. Most bones 
lie inside of bundles of muscles. If the bone of an arm 
or leg is broken in two, the limb will be useless, for 
there will be nothing to support the soft flesh. A 

doctor will bring 
the broken ends 
into place, and will 
bind the whole bone 
to a stiff board or 
splint , to keep the 
parts from moving. 
Then a new piece 
of bone will form, and unite the broken ends. This 
takes from three to six weeks (p. 155). 

The lime which is in bones makes them stiff. The 



A Long Bone Sawed in Two Lengthwise 
Its central part is hollow, and its ends are spongy. 







EXERCISE 


221 


bones of grown persons contain a great deal of lime, 
and will not bend much without breaking. The bones 
of babies and young children will bend somewhat with¬ 
out breaking, for they contain less lime than the bones 
of grown persons. For this reason the bones of chil¬ 
dren are not injured by falls and blows which would 
break those of older persons. 

There are about 200 bones in the body, and each has 
a name. For example, the bone of the upper arm is 
called the hu r merus , the bone on the thumb side of the 
forearm is called the ra'dius , and that on the little 
finger side is called the ul'na. 

Joints. — Bones are joined together end. to end 
with thick and strong bands of gristle called lig'aments. 
Nearly all of the 
bones of the arms 
and legs may be 
turned on their 
joints, like doors on 
their hinges. The 
ends of these bones 
are smooth and 
round, and are made 
slippery by a fluid. 

Most of the motions of the body are the bending 
of joints by means of muscles. One end of a muscle 
is usually fast to a bone, and the other end, or its 
cord, is fastened to the bone next to it. When the 
muscle shortens itself, the two bones turn at the joint. 



The Shoulder Joint of a Sheep 

One side is cut open to show the rounded upper end 
of the leg bone. 




222 


EXERCISE 


Sprains. — When a joint is bent too far, its liga¬ 
ments will be stretched and torn. Then the joint is 
said to be sprained. A sprained joint is painful and 
swollen, and the skin around it is often black or blue 
because of the bleeding from the torn ligaments. 

What to Do for a Sprain. — If a joint is sprained, 
put it into a pail of hot water for an hour or two. Add 
more hot water every few minutes to keep the heat as 
great as can be borne. This will lessen the pain and 
swelling. Afterward wrap a bandage snugly around 
the sprained part, and for some distance on each side 
of it, in order to keep the joint from moving. But 
after a day or two use the sprained part in order to keep 
the joint limber. 

Two Objects of Exercise. — The use of muscles is 
called exercise. One reason for taking exercise is to 
have large and strong muscles. It is a fine thing to 
be large and strong in body, but in these days great 
muscular strength is not often needed. Healthy 
muscles are of more value than strong ones, but muscles 
will not be healthy unless they are exercised. 

A second reason for taking exercise is to keep well 
in both body and mind. No one can feel well and 
bright without some exercise. Girls and women need 
exercise as much as growing boys do. 

Exercise and Health. — Muscles get their power 
from the burning or oxidation of food, just as an auto¬ 
mobile gets its power from burning gasoline. Exercise 
produces hunger, because the muscles oxidize food 


EXERCISE 


223 


rapidly while they work. It causes shortness of breath 
and deep breathing, because the working muscles re¬ 
quire a great deal of oxygen. It rouses every part of 
the body to do its best work. It causes the stomach 
to prepare food, the lungs to supply oxygen, the heart 
to pump blood, and the kidneys and skin to get rid of 
waste matter. When your muscles are in good condi¬ 
tion, you are likely to be well and strong in body, and 
bright and cheerful in mind. 

An Erect Body. — When you hold up your head and 
shoulders, you exercise the muscles of your back. Then 
the muscles grow strong and hold up your shoulders 
without your thinking about them. Soldiers are taught 
to stand straight in order that their muscles will grow 
strong and their lungs will have great breathing power 
(p. 175). Always standing straight and sitting upright 
will help you as much as these positions will help a 
soldier. 

How Much to Exercise. — The most healthful way 
to live is to stay out of doors all day doing light work 
with the hands. Those who sit still and work for hours 
with their minds will not feel well unless they spend 
some time each day in taking exercise. Grown persons 
need to spend at least an hour or two every day at some 
kind of exercise, but children need to exercise for three 
or four hours a day. 

The Best Exercise. — One of the best kinds of exer¬ 
cise is doing useful work, such as chores in the house 
and barn. You will take exercise if you work with 


224 


EXERCISE 


carpenters’ tools, or hoe a garden, or sweep a room, 
or rake a lawn, or care for hens and horses. All such 

exercise will help 
your mind as well 
as your muscles, 
and will also teach 
you to do useful 
work. 

If you have to run 
errands or help your 
parents around the 
house or barn, you 
will get exercise 
without thinking 
about it. If you have no work to do, take your ex¬ 
ercise by going on long walks, or by working in a gym¬ 
nasium, or by playing games in which you run a great 
deal. 

Swimming. — Swimming is good exercise, for it 
puts nearly every muscle in the body to use. The 
water also cleanses and refreshes the body. 

Some persons have a fear of the water if they do not 
know how to swim. When an accident happens, and 
they or their friends are thrown into deep water, they 
are too frightened to help themselves or any one else. 
On one hot day in summer twenty-two persons were 
drowned in different parts of New England while they 
were bathing for pleasure. Nearly all of these deaths 
could have been prevented if the bathers had known 



Good Exercise 

One of the best kinds of exercise is that of doing 
useful work, such as raking a lawn or doing errands. 




EXERCISE 


225 


how to swim. Learn to swim, so that you will be 
cool and helpful when an accident happens on the 
water. 

Rowing. — Rowing a boat will exercise most of the 
muscles of the body. By rowing you will learn how 
to handle a boat, and will know what to do if you should 
need to go out on the water. 

Play. — Exercise means not merely the use of the 
muscles, but the pleasant use of the mind also. When 
you do not enjoy an exercise, you sometimes feel worse 
than if you had not taken it. Even though an interest¬ 
ing game may require you to think, and to work hard 
with your arms and legs, yet you will enjoy it while 
you play, and afterward you will feel refreshed in mind 
and body. 

Those games are best that require quick thought as 
well as strength. Such sports as baseball, tennis, and 
skating, are enjoyable forms of exercise which will 
train your mind to think quickly, and your body to 
become strong and graceful. 

Gymnasium. — Many schools have gymnasiums in 
which a pupil can exercise any set of muscles that 
he wishes. If any part of the body is weak, that part 
may be exercised and strengthened. If the arms are 
weak, they may be exercised by pulling upon weights. 
If the back is weak, it may be strengthened by exercising 
on a rowing machine. 

Outdoor Exercise. — While you are taking exercise, 
you breathe a great deal of air into your body. You 


OV. PERS. HYG. — 15 


226 


EXERCISE 



Happy Exercise at Recess 
Take your exercise out of doors if possible. 

get the greatest good from exercise when you take 
it out of doors where the air is pure and free from dust. 
This is one of the reasons why baseball and running 
games are among the best kinds of exercise. 

Too Much Exercise. — If you exercise until your 
muscles are tired out, you will have no strength left 
for work. Schoolboys training for athletic contests 
often run hard or lift heavy weights until they have 
used up their strength. Then both their bodies and 
their minds grow weaker instead of stronger. But 
your feelings will usually tell you whether or not ex¬ 
ercise is helping you. If any exercise that you take 





EXERCISE 


227 


makes you so tired that a short rest does not refresh 
you, that exercise is too hard for you. 

Alcohol and Strength. — Because strong drink makes 
the heart beat hard and the blood flow fast, a person 
who drinks it may feel strong. He is no stronger than 
he was before he took the drink, for the alcohol is like 
a whip that gives the body no strength for doing the 
work. So far from being stronger, a person is really 
weaker and less able to use his strength because he 
has taken the drink. 


QUESTIONS 

Of what is the lean meat of an animal’s body composed ? 

What substance in meat makes it tough? 

What part of the flesh produces the motions of the body? 

Where is a good place on the body to feel a muscle acting ? 

What is a tendon ? 

Where may tendons be felt in the body? 

Of what use are the bones? 

How may a person who has a broken bone be helped ? 

How are the bones joined together in the body ? 

What is a ligament ? 

What happens to the ligaments when a joint is sprained? 

What should be done for a sprain ? 

Give two reasons why a person should take exercise. 

From what do muscles get their power to work ? 

How does exercise refresh the body after a person has been sitting 
still for some time ? 

How may exercise help a person to have an erect body ? 

What are some ways in which exercise may help the mind ? 

What are some kinds of exercise that train the mind as well as the 
body? 

Give some reasons why every person should learn to swim. 

Name some uses of a gymnasium. 


228 


EXERCISE 


What harm may be done by exercising too much ? 

What effect does alcohol have on a person’s strength? 

For the Teacher. — The subject of exercise is one to be treated principally 
on the playground and in the gymnasium, but there are a few fundamental 
principles to be learned in the classroom. 

This chapter describes the apparatus with which the body performs volun¬ 
tary movements. It takes up the bones and joints, as well as the muscles, 
for most movements consist in bending joints. 

The basic principles of the hygienic effects of exercise are stated in the 
paragraph on “ Exercise and Health,” page 222. Activity of every part 
of the body promotes good health. Bones and muscles constitute about two 
thirds of the weight of the body, and their activity causes all other parts of the 
body to become active. Almost the only practical way to increase the activity 
of the organs of digestion, circulation, and respiration is by exercising the 
muscles. Brain action is essential in exercise. What is called muscular 
fatigue consists largely in exhaustion of the brain cells. 

Muscle training involves the training of the motor areas of the brain, and through 
them, of the whole brain. Games and other forms of muscular exercise develop 
those mental qualities which are of value in earning a living. The playground is 
a miniature world in which each pupil strives for success, with some schemers and 
some lazy ones who seek unfair advantages. Setting-up exercises, physical train¬ 
ing, and athletics afford the teacher frequent opportunities to correlate mental and 
moral topics with exercise itself. Among the related topics which a teacher should 
emphasize are: 

Team play, or adapting ourselves to others. 

Prompt response to orders and signals. 

Attention and concentration. 

Fair play, honesty, and loyalty. 

Generosity and self-control in both victory and defeat. 

Serious responsibility for the credit and honor of self, the team, and the school. 

The teacher also has a duty in teaching the pupils how to play games, and in 
directing them in organized play during recess periods. Games afford the teacher 
an excellent point of contact with pupils who are reticent or antagonistic in the 
schoolroom. 


CHAPTER XXVI 
THE BRAIN AND NERVES 

The Mind. — Each person has a body and a mind. 
The body alone is not the whole man, for it can do 
only what the mind directs. Neither is the mind the 
whole man, for it cannot think or act except by means 
of that part of the body which is called the brain . 

The Nervous System. — The brain of a person is 
about the size of his two fists. It fills the whole top 
of the head above 
the eyes and ears. 

A long cord, called 
the spinal cord , ex¬ 
tends from it down 
the inside of the 
backbone. Long 
threads of flesh, 
called nerves , go out 
from the brain and 
spinal cord to every 
part of the body. 

The brain, spinal 
cord, and nerves are called the nervous system. 

Sensory Nerve Messages. — Nerves are like tele¬ 
phone wires, and are always carrying messages back 

229 





230 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


and forth between the brain or spinal cord and the 
rest of the body. The nerves carry to the brain mes¬ 
sages of seeing, hearing, feeling, smell¬ 
ing, and tasting. By means of these 
messages the mind finds out what is 
going on outside of the body. Nearly 
all that a person knows about what is 
going on around him he finds out by 
seeing, or by hearing, or by feeling, or 
by smelling, or by tasting. Children 
at school get nearly all their knowl¬ 
edge by means of messages of sight 
and hearing. 

The messages which the nerves 
carry to the brain are called sen'sory 
nerve messages. Receiving messages 
from the nerves is one kind of work 
which the brain does. 

The Use of Pain. — Nerves also 
carry messages which tell the brain 
when a part of the body has been 
wounded or injured. Pain is a message 
telling you that something is wrong in 
0 _ the part which aches or smarts. If you 

Human Spinal Cord 1 # *' 

m had no pains and aches when you were 

(i natural size.) The 1 . J 

strings on its sides are hurt, you might lose an arm or leg be- 

the ends of nerves. r , . , . . 

fore you would know of your danger. 
A drug such as morphine eases pain because it 
prevents the brain from receiving the message of 









THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


231 


pain. The drug does not cure the painful part, but 
it may deceive a person and make him think he is 
well when he no longer feels the pain. 

Motor Nerve Messages. — Sending messages to 
the muscles, to tell them what motions to make, is 
a second kind of work which the brain does. These 
messages are called motor nerve messages. When¬ 
ever the hands work, the brain sends messages which 
direct the motions of the arms and fingers. A person 
works with his brain as well as with his muscles when¬ 
ever he moves any part of his body. 

Thinking. — Thinking is a third kind of work which 
the brain does. The brain keeps a record of the mes¬ 
sages which it receives 
and sends out. This 
record is the memory. 

The mind often looks 
over the memory rec¬ 
ords which are stored 
in the brain. This act 
of the mind is called 
thinking. 

Where Brain Work 
Is Done. — Each part 
of the brain has its 
own kind of work to 
do. The back part of 
the brain receives mes¬ 
sages of sight, hearing, 



Diagram of the Work of the Brain 

Each part of the brain has its own kind of 
work to do, 



232 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


feeling, smelling, and tasting; the top of the brain 
sends out orders to the muscles; and the front part 
of the brain does the most of the work of thinking. 
Thus, when you look at an arithmetic, you use the 
back part of the brain; when you copy an example, 
you use the top part; and when you think how to do 
the example, you use the front part of the brain. 

Tired Brains and Muscles.—When a muscle becomes 
tired, the part of the brain which directs its work also 
becomes tired. When the hands work, the brain be¬ 
comes as tired as the muscles which move the hands. 
Playing ball for an afternoon tires the brain as much 
as it tires the arms and legs. When you feel tired 
after exercise, both your muscles and your brain are 
tired. 

Hard exercise for a few minutes at recess will help 
to brighten the mind if it does not tire the muscles 
(p. 225). But exercise that tires the muscles will tire 
the brain also. Hard play before school often makes 
a pupil so tired that he cannot learn a lesson well. 
Practicing long and hard with an athletic team will 
tire the brain as well as the muscles. 

Play and Brain Rest.—When one part of your brain 
is tired, it may rest if you change your work and use 
another part of your brain. When you play outdoor 
games at recess, you make use of the part of the brain 
which directs the muscles, and you give the thinking 
part of your brain a rest. The exercise of playing games 
also makes you breathe deeply, and causes your blood 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


233 


to flow fast. When school is called again, you feel 
bright and refreshed. 

Sleep.—You may easily rest your muscles by lying 
still, but often you will find it hard to keep the brain 
from thinking. One of the hardest of all things to 
do is to sit still and try not even to think. 

The only time when the mind is at complete rest 
is during sleep. Then the mind almost stops act¬ 
ing, and the brain builds itself up and stores food for 
the next day’s work. Every person must have sleep. 
The body can go without food longer than without 
sleep. A child ten years old needs at least ten hours 
of sound sleep each night. A grown person needs to 
sleep about seven hours daily. If you have had enough 
sleep, you will feel refreshed and ready to get up as soon 
as you wake up. If you are dull and feel like going 
to sleep after you have washed and dressed, you have 
not had enough sleep, or else you are sick. If you sleep 
well and wake up bright and refreshed, you are not 
likely to harm yourself by working as hard as you 
choose all day long. 

Sitting up Late. — Children cannot work or play 
until late at night without being tired the next morn¬ 
ing. If they sit up late, they will lose some of their 
sleep unless they sleep late in the morning. If you 
expect to spend an evening a,t a party or entertain¬ 
ment, take a nap in the afternoon before you go. 
Then you will be rested for the evening’s work and 
will also get your full amount of sleep. 


234 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


When you have lessons to learn in the evening, 
you will not be able to do them well if you are tired. 
Drop your work early in the evening and go to bed. 
The sleep will rest your mind, and in the morning 
you will be able to think clearly and to learn lessons 
which you could not understand in the evening. 

Children are often cross and fretful in the evening 
because they are tired and do not know it. When 
bedtime comes, the place for you is in bed, even though 
you may not feel sleepy. 

Some Causes of Wakefulness. — When a person is 
asleep, far less blood flows through the brain than while 
he is awake. Anything that makes a large quantity 
of blood flow through the brain will make the mind 
active and prevent sleep. For this reason working or 
playing hard just before going to bed is often a cause 
of wakefulness. Amuse yourself after supper in some 
quiet way, as by looking at pictures. Then your 
mind will become quiet, only a little blood will flow 
through your brain, and you will easily fall asleep. 

Some persons do not sleep well because their muscles 
do not become tired. Those who work the hardest 
with their muscles can usually sleep the best. 

Impure air in a bedroom is often a cause of poor 
sleep. Keeping a bedroom window open all night is a 
great help in sleeping soundly. 

Sleep and Eating. — A common cause of lying awake 
is wrong eating. If the stomach does not digest food 
well, there will often be a headache, or other uncom- 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


235 


for table feeling, which will prevent sleep. Poor sleep 
and bad dreams are often caused by wrong eating. 
Sweets, or desserts, or other fancy dishes at night, may 
cause indigestion and prevent sleep. 

Narcotics. — Many kinds of drugs, such as opium 
and morphine, prevent the brain and nerves from act¬ 
ing. If a person is in pain, they prevent the brain from 
feeling the pain. They may almost stop the brain 
from acting, and so they may put a person to sleep. 
But such drugs are dangerous, and are safe only when 
they are given by a careful doctor (p. 127). 

Alcohol. — If a person’s brain is benumbed with strong 
drink, we say that he is drunk. His brain cannot send 
out motor messages properly, and so he staggers in his 
walk. He cannot feel sensory messages keenly, and 
so he may injure himself without knowing it. He can¬ 
not think well, and so he may act foolishly. 

Tobacco. — The brain of a boy is easily made tired, 
and is quickly harmed by those things which may have 
little effect on a grown man. Any use of tobacco is 
harmful to boys. 

One of the worst effects of tobacco is that it hinders 
brain growth. If a man is injured by tobacco, he may 
get well after he stops its use. But a boy cannot 
make up for the loss of growth caused by tobacco. 
Boys who smoke cigarettes will almost surely be behind 
other boys in school work. When they grow up and 
go out to work for themselves, they will be unable to 
obtain high positions in life. 


236 


THE BRAIN AND NERVES 


QUESTIONS 

What is the brain? 

What is the spinal cord ? 

What are nerves? 

What are sensory nerve messages? 

Of what use is pain ? 

What are motor nerve messages? 

What makes the muscles of your arm move? 

How does muscular work tire the brain ? 

What is the memory? 

What is a narcotic? Name some narcotics. 

Why does a drunken man stagger in walking ? 

What effect does tobacco have on brain growth? 

Name some ways in which the mind may become rested. 

How does play at recess rest the brain? 

Of what use is sleep? 

How much sleep does a ten-year-old child need ? 

If you expect to be out for an evening, how may you get all the 
sleep that you need ? 

What are some of the usual causes of a person’s wakefulness? 
How may eating keep you awake ? 

How does exercise help a person to sleep ? 

For the Teacher. — While the subject of the nervous system is too deep 
for younger pupils, yet they should learn the fundamental facts regarding 
its structure and action. It is both correct and helpful to compare the nervous 
system with a telephone system. 

There is no need to go into details regarding the spinal cord and its relation 
to the brain. Classify nervous actions into three groups: 

1. Sensory messages, or those going to the brain. 

2. Motor messages, or those going from the brain. 

3. Thinking, or actions taking place in the brain. 

Emphasis is to be placed on the words to, from, and in. The words sensory, 
motor, and thinking stand for types of nervous actions, and are taken from a 
prominent conscious action in each group. 

Emphasize three practical points: 

1. The use of pain. 

2. Brain fatigue and tired muscles. 

3. The need of sleep. 


CHAPTER XXVII 
SEEING AND HEARING 


The Eye. — The eye is a hollow globe filled with a 
clear liquid. Light enters it through a round window, 
called the cornea (kor'ne-d), and passes through a lens 
that is like the lens 
of a photographer’s 
camera. The lens 
causes the light to 
form a picture upon 
nerves which lie in 
the back part of the 
globe. The feeling 
which the light pro¬ 
duces in the nerves 
is called sight. 

A colored curtain, called the iris (l'ris), hangs in 
front of the lens, and gives the eye its color. The iris 
has a round hole, called the pupil , which becomes 
large in a dim light and small in a bright light, in order 
to regulate the amount of light which enters the eye. 
The pupil appears black, because the inside of the eye 
has a dark-colored lining. 

Dirt in the Eye. — The eye is covered with two lids 
which protect it from dust and dirt. A liquid called 
237 





238 


SEEING AND HEARING 


tears runs under the lids to keep the eye clean. When 
you have a bit of sand or other hard dirt under a lid, 
your eye itches or smarts. Do not rub the lid, for rub¬ 
bing might make the dirt scratch the eye. Lift the lid, 
and hold it away from the eyeball for a moment so that 
the tears may wash the dirt away. If the dirt does 
not come away, let some one lift the eyelid and pick 
out the dirt with the corner of a clean handkerchief. 

Bathing the Eyes. — Dust and tears sometimes 
dry on the eyelashes and on the edges of the lids. The 
dirt may contain disease germs which make the lids 
sore and tender. One great reason for washing the 
face often is to wash dirt and disease germs from the 
eyes. 

Sometimes the eyes may smart and become red, and 
a white matter may run from them. The soreness is 
often caused by disease germs growing under the lids. 
A little borax dissolved in the water with which the 
eyes are washed will help to kill the germs. 

The eyes of babies often become sore because they 
are not kept clean. Flies crawling over their eyes may 
leave disease germs on them. Many persons are blind 
because their eyes were not kept clean while they were 
babies. A baby’s eyes will not be likely to become 
sore if they are kept clean. 

Poor Sight. — The eyes of some persons do not form 
clear pictures of what they try to see. These persons 
cannot see well. Their eyes soon become tired, and 
they often have headaches. Many school children 


SEEING AND HEARING 


239 


have headaches because they have to strain their eyes 
in their studies. Some are backward because they have 
poor sight, and no one is aware of the fact. The sight 
of every pupil should be tested. 

Testing the Sight. — The sight may be tested by 
finding the greatest distance at which large, plain 
letters can be read. Test one eye at a time while the 
other is kept closed. The following table gives the 
distances at which letters of various sizes may be read 
by a person with good eyesight: 

Height of Letter Distance at Which it may be Read 


3§ inches 
if inches 
if inches 
J inch 
f inch 
f inch 
f inch 


200 feet 
100 feet 
70 feet 
50 feet 
40 feet 
30 feet 
20 feet 


A record of a person’s eyesight may be made in the 
form of a fraction in which the numerator is the great¬ 
est distance at which a letter can be read by this person, 
and the denominator is the greatest distance at which 
it can be read by some one with good eyesight. If a 
person has to stand only ten feet away from a card in 
order to read letters f inch high, that person sees only 
|-g-, or one half, as well as he should. 

Eyeglasses. — A person who has to hold a book 
less than a foot from the eyes while reading is near- 


240 


SEEING AND HEARING 


sighted. He may greatly improve his sight by wearing 
glasses. If they are not worn, the eyes will be strained. 

If a person has to hold a book at arm’s length when 
reading, he is farsighted and needs glasses. Most old 
persons are farsighted. 

The front parts of the eyes of some persons are curved 
unevenly. This trouble is called astig' matism. These 
persons see things blurred, just as a person with good 
eyesight would see them blurred when looking at'them 
through a wrinkled window glass. They often have 
headaches because they tire the muscles of their eyes 
in trying to see clearly. They may improve their 
sight and stop their headaches by wearing the proper 
glasses. 

If you cannot see as well as other persons, some¬ 
thing is the matter with your eyes. You cannot im¬ 
prove the sight by straining the eyes. Tell your 
teacher or your parents, and ask them to help you to 
get fitted with glasses. 

Eyeglasses that stay in place by pinching the nose 
often produce pains. Spectacles do not pinch the nose, 
but are held in place by bows which loop over the ears. 

Cross-eye. — If a person does not turn both eyes 
toward an object at which he looks, we say that he is 
cross-eyed. Those who are cross-eyed cannot see well, 
for everything appears double to them. Their sight 
may be greatly improved by a doctor. 

The Proper Light. — A wrong light is often a cause 
of eye pain and eyestrain. Reading by a dim light, 


SEEING AND HEARING 


241 


or by one that is unsteady, will strain the eyes and often 
cause a headache. 

If you face a strong light while you read, your eyes 
will be dazzled and soon become painful. If you place 
your seat where the window or lamp will be on your 
left side, the light will be in the best position for read¬ 
ing or studying. 

Granulated Eyelids. — Sometimes the eyelids look 
red on the inside, and feel as if they were covered with 
grains of fine sand. This trouble is called gran'ulated 
eyelids . One form of granulated eyelids is infectious, 
and is called trachoma (tra-ko'ma). It may be caught 
from towels or handkerchiefs that have been used by 
some one who has trachoma. The disease is becoming 
common in cities. It is dangerous and may cause 
blindness, and yet it may easily be cured. Every 
child who has it should be taken at once to a doctor. 

The Ear. — The ear . consists of three parts, which 
are called the outer ear, the middle ear, and the inner 
ear. 

The outer ear consists of a shell of flesh, and a short 
tube which extends into the side of the head. The 
tube ends at a thin skin which is called the eardrum, 
because it is stretched over the end of the tube like a 
drumhead. 

Behind the eardrum is a small hollow space called 
the middle ear . The middle ear is filled with air and 
is crossed by a chain of three tiny bones that reach 
from the eardrum to another space called the inner ear . 

OV. PERS. HYG.-16 


242 


SEEING AND HEARING 


The inner ear is shaped like a snail shell, and is filled 
with a clear liquid. The nerves of hearing are stretched 
across it like the strings of a piano. The middle ear 



Diagram showing its principal parts. 

and the inner ear are both hollowed out of hard bone, 
and therefore are not likely to be injured by blows and 
jars. 

How We Hear. — Sound is caused by air moving 
in waves. A very loud sound, such as thunder, is pro¬ 
duced by great air waves which strike against windows 
and doors and cause them to shake and rattle. When a 
sound is heard, air waves strike against the eardrum 
and move the bones of the middle ear, and the liquid of 
the inner ear. The nerves of the inner ear feel the 











SEEING AND HEARING 


243 


motion as sound. A person who is hearing a sound 
is really feeling the motion of the liquid in the inner 
ear. 

Testing the Hearing. — Some school children are 
dull and inattentive because they are deaf, and neither 
they, nor their parents, nor their teachers have dis¬ 
covered the deafness. In many schools the hearing of 
every pupil is tested. 

You may test the hearing by finding the great¬ 
est distance at which a whispered word may be heard 
in a quiet room. Test each ear separately while the 
other ear is closed with a finger. The person testing 
the hearing pronounces a number and the person tested 
repeats it to show that it is understood. A person with 
good hearing can understand a loud whisper in a quiet 
room at a distance of about 25 feet. 

The record of a person’s hearing may be put in the 
form of a fraction in which the denominator is 25, and 
the numerator is the greatest number of feet at which 
a whisper is understood. If a person can understand a 
whispered word at no greater distance than five feet, 
that person hears only or as well as he should. 

Eustachian Tube. — A small tube, called the Eu¬ 
stachian (u-sta'ki-an) tube, lets air pass from the throat 
into the middle ear. Trying to blow the nose hard 
while holding the nostrils closed may force so much air 
into the middle ear that the eardrum may bulge out. 
Then the hearing will be dulled, because the eardrum 
will not move freely. When a person has a cold or a 


244 


SEEING AND HEARING 


sore throat, the ears often buzz, and there is a slight 
deafness, because the swelling in the throat stops up 
the Eustachian tube, and does not let air pass into the 
middle ear. Most persons who are deaf are made so 
by adenoids or other throat troubles which stop up 
the Eustachian tube. 

Earache. — The middle ear is moistened with a 
small amount of liquid. If the liquid cannot run out 
through the Eustachian tube, it may fill the middle ear 
full and press hard upon the eardrum. This causes 
an earache. The eardrum may burst and let the liquid 
run out, and then the pain stops. But the ear is likely 
to be deaf, and matter is likely to run from it for days 
or weeks afterwards. 

If you have an earache or a running ear, you are in 
danger of being deaf for the rest of your life, but if you 
go to a doctor, you can usually be cured and your 
hearing can be saved. 

Adenoids and Earaches. — Most children who have 
earache and running ears have adenoids growing in 
their throats (p. 56). The first thing to do in order 
to cure an earache or deafness is to have the adenoids 
taken out. 

Earwax. — The tube of the outer ear produces a 
brown wax which protects it from injury. Persons 
often force the wax deep into the tube when they try 
to remove it, and in that way they make themselves 
deaf. If the wax is not touched, all that is not needed 
in the ear will usually drop out. 


SEEING AND HEARING 


245 


Voice. — In order that words may be heard dis¬ 
tinctly, their sounds must be made clearly and dis¬ 
tinctly. The sounds of the voice come from the 
upper part of the windpipe just below the back end of 
the tongue. They are made by forcing air between 
two bands of flesh called vocal cords. The sounds are 
made pleasing, and are formed into words, by the nose, 
mouth, tongue, and teeth. You must have all these 
parts of the body in good order if you would have a 
good voice. 

A person learns to speak by listening to the words 
of others. Those who cannot talk are usually too deaf 
to hear. They may learn to talk if they go to a school 
for the deaf. 

What is called a tongue-tie, or a cord hindering the 
movements of the tongue, is very seldom seen. Very 
few persons with indistinct speech have anything the 
matter with their tongues or throats. Nearly every 
person can easily learn by practice to speak distinctly. 

A Pleasing Voice. — If you mumble your words 
and speak indistinctly, those who listen to you will 
have to try hard to understand you. If your voice 
is shrill and unpleasant, it will annoy other persons and 
make them uncomfortable. Sick persons are often 
made worse by the loud talk of visitors and nurses, 
but every one likes to hear a voice that is soft and 
pleasant. One of the best recommendations that a 
boy or girl can have is the habit of speaking clearly and 
pleasantly. 


246 


SEEING AND HEARING 


QUESTIONS 

In what respect is the eye like a photographer’s camera? 

Of what use are the eyelids ? Of what use are tears ? 

How may a speck of dirt be removed from under the eyelid ? 
What care should be given to the eyes when they become sore? 
How does wearing glasses often help a headache? 

What is nearsightedness? farsightedness? astigmatism? 
When should glasses be worn ? 

How may the sight be tested? 

What is trachoma? 

How should the light be arranged for reading? 

With which part of the ear is sound heard ? 

Why do the ears often buzz when the nose is blown hard? 

How does throat trouble cause earache and deafness? 

How may the hearing of a person be tested ? 

Why does a deaf baby not learn to talk? 

How is the sound of the voice made? 

What has a pleasant voice to do with health ? 


For the Teacher. — A camera will illustrate the subject of vision. Bring 
a focusing camera to school, and show the pupils the image on the ground glass, 
and the method of focusing. 

Test the sight of the pupils. Standard test cards may be bought; but if 
none are available, posters and the headlines of newspapers may be used by 
measuring the heights of the large letters according to the table on page 239. 

Make a practical application of the subject of lighting. See that the windows 
of the schoolroom are not obstructed, and that the desks are so arranged that 
each pupil gets his share of light, and yet no one faces a strong light. 

Observe the pupils while they are reading, and note the faulty use of their eyes. 
Assist those with defective sight to obtain glasses or other means of relief. 

Emphasize the relation of the nose and throat to deafness. 

Test the hearing of the pupils and help the deaf to secure proper treatment. 
Emphasize the need of taking treatment for running ears and deafness. Warn 
the pupils against pulling or boxing the ears, or making loud noises near the ears. 

The voice is closely related to hearing. Many children are wrongly 
charged with inattention or deafness, when the trouble is defective enuncia¬ 
tion by the speaker. Clear enunciation is of importance to all on account of 
the universal use of the telephone. Stammering and stuttering are nervous 
affections, and their treatment consists in gentle training. 


GLOSSARY 


Absor'bent cotton, cotton prepared for dressing wounds. 

Ad'enoids, soft growths in the upper part of the throat behind the nose. 

Al'cohol, a colorless liquid used in manufacturing and as a fuel. It is 
also found in strong drink. 

Antitox'in, a substance which will destroy the poisons of disease germs, 
such as those of diphtheria or lockjaw, when they are in the blood. 

Arte'rial blood, blood containing a large amount of oxygen. Most 
of the blood in arteries is arterial. 

Ar'tery, a blood tube which carries blood away from the heart. 

Artificial respira'tion, causing air to pass into and out of the lungs 
of a person who seems to be lifeless. 

Astig'matism, an unevenness of the surface of the eye, causing blurred 
sight. 

Au'ricles, the two thin-walled chambers in the large end of the heart. 
They receive blood from the veins. 

Bacte'ria, the smallest known forms of living things. Some cause 
decay and others produce diseases. 

Band'age, a dressing wrapped around a wounded part. 

Bile, the bitter yellow liquid produced by the liver. 

Blis'ter, a collection of the liquid part of the blood under the outer 
layer of the skin. 

Board of Health, a body of officers who have charge of the prevention 
of infectious disease, the purity of food supplies, and other matters 
affecting health. 

Brain, the seat of the mind. It fills the upper part of the head. 

Bron'chi, the tubes through which air passes from the windpipe to the 
lungs. 

Canning, preparing food by heating it and sealing it in air-tight 
cans in order to prevent it from spoiling. 

Cap'illaries, the microscopic tubes which carry blood from the arteries 
to the veins. 

Car'bon diox'ide, a colorless gas formed by most fires, and by the 
oxidation in the body. 

Cells, the separate, living parts of which the body, or an organ, is 
composed. 

Cesspool, an underground tank from which sewage soaks into the soil, 

247 


248 


GLOSSARY 


Circulation, the flow of blood through the body. 

Clot, blood in a jellylike form. 

Cocoa (ko'ko), the ground seeds of the cacao tree; chocolate. 

Coffee, the roasted seeds of the coffee shrub. 

Cold, a mild form of infectious disease. 

Commu'nicable disease, a disease which may be spread, or communi¬ 
cated, from the sick to the well. 

Connective tissue, the tough, white fibers that hold cells in place. 

Contact, a person who has been near one who has an infectious disease, 
and is likely to have caught the sickness. 

Conta'gious diseas'es, diseases which may be caught by being near 
the sick. 

Cooking, heating food in order to make it ready for eating. 

Corns, tender, thickened spots upon the outer layer of the skin on a 
toe or other part of the foot. 

Cor'puscles, the solid bodies that float in the liquid part of the blood. 

Culture, disease germs planted in a tube and growing there. 

Dan'druff, loose scales of skin that fall off from the scalp. 

Decay', the destruction of once living substances by bacteria or molds. 

Den'tine, the bony substance of which most of a tooth is made. 

Diges'tion, the change of food into forms that may enter the blood. 

Diphthe'ria, an infectious disease caused by diphtheria germs. It 
usually produces a thick brown membrane, or patch, in the throat. 

Disease germs, microscopic plants and animals which grow in a liv¬ 
ing body and produce a disease. 

Disinfection, destroying disease germs in a substance. 

Distillation, separating alcohol from a boiling liquid by collecting and 
cooling the steam. 

Dressing, a covering for a wound. 

Drug, a poisonous substance used as medicine, especially one which 
produces sleep. 

Eardrum, the thin sheet of flesh at the inner end of the tube of the 
outer ear. 

Earwax, a brown, waxy substance which is formed in the tube of the 
outer ear. 

Enam'el, the hard, white outer part of a tooth. 

Epider'mis, the thin, outer layer of the skin. 

Esoph'agus, the tube down which food is swallowed. 

Eusta'chian tube, a small air tube leading from the throat to the mid¬ 
dle ear. 

Farsightedness, the power to see distant things clearly, but not those 
near to the eye. 


GLOSSARY 


249 

Fermentation, changing sugar in a liquid to alcohol and carbon 
dioxide gas. The gas makes the liquid appear to be boiling. 

Fever, a sickness in which the body is too warm. It is usually caused 
by disease germs. 

Filter, a tank of sand for removing solid impurities from water. 

Food, any substance which the body may safely use for building 
itself up, or for producing heat and power. 

For'malin, a colorless liquid used for killing disease germs. 

Gas'tric juice, the liquid that digests food in the stomach. 

Germs, the plants or animals that grow in a living body and produce 
diseases; bacteria. 

Gland, a collection of cells arranged in the form of a tube, and manu¬ 
facturing a substance out of blood. 

Gran'ulated eyelids, a disease of the inner surfaces of the eyelids, 
caused by disease germs ; trachoma. 

Heart, the muscular pump that forces blood through the body. 

Hu'merus, the bone reaching from the elbow to the shoulder. 

Hy'giene, the study of the care of the body. 

Infectious diseases, those forms of sickness which a person may 
catch from some one who is sick. They are caused by micro¬ 
scopic plants or animals growing in the body. 

In'growing nail, a toenail whose edge is buried beneath the flesh 
pushed against it by a tight shoe. 

Intestine, the long food tube below the stomach. 

I'odine, a brown substance which is dissolved in alcohol and used for 
killing disease germs on the skin around wounds. 

Isolation, keeping a diseased person away from others in order to 
prevent the disease from spreading. 

Kid'neys, two red masses of flesh which remove waste matters from 
the blood. 

Lig'ament, strong bands of flesh which bind bones of a joint together. 

Liv'er, the large, red mass of flesh which receives digested food from 
the intestine and forms bile. 

Lock'jaw, a dangerous disease producing a contraction of the muscles. 
It is caused by disease germs which enter a wound. 

Lungs, the spongy masses of flesh in which the blood takes oxygen 
from the air. 

Mag'got, a young house fly in its wormlike stage. 

Mala'ria, a sickness in which the body at first is cold and within an 


250 


GLOSSARY 


hour is too warm. It is caused by disease germs which are 
placed in the body by mosquitoes when they bite. 

Measles, a children’s disease in which the child seems to have a com¬ 
mon cold for several days, and then red spots appear on the skin. 

Molars, the double teeth. They have flat surfaces for grinding food. 

Molds, microscopic plants which often produce a furry growth on 
food and clothing. 

Motor nerve, a nerve which carries a message away from the brain 
or spinal cord. 

Mu'cus, the liquid produced by the lining of the nose, throat, and 
other hollow parts of the body. 

Muscle, a bundle of cells that produces motion in the body; lean 
meat. 


Narcotic, a drug that dulls the mind and produces sleep. 
Nearsightedness, sight in which objects must be held near the eye 
in order to be seen. 

Nerves, long threads or strings of flesh which carry messages between 
the brain or spinal cord and the rest of the body. 

Nervous system, the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. 

Nic'otine, the principal poisonous substance in tobacco. 


Oil glands, tiny pockets in the skin in which an oil is formed for soften¬ 
ing the skin. 

O'pium, the dried juice of certain plants. It is a narcotic drug. 

Organ, a part of the body which does a special kind of work. 

Oxida'tion, the joining of oxygen to a substance. The burning in a 
stove is a rapid form of oxidation. 

Ox'ygen, a substance that forms one fifth of the air, and unites with 
other substances in a fire and other kinds of oxidation. 


Pan'creas, a mass of flesh in which one of the digestive fluids is formed. 

Parame'cium, a microscopic animal consisting of a single cell. 

Pas'teurizing, heating milk to a temperature less than boiling in order 
to kill the bacteria it may contain. 

Perspira'tion, the liquid which comes from the skin when the body 
is too warm ; sweat. 

Physiol'ogy, the study of the actions of a living body. 

Pro'tein, the substance, like the white of an egg, which forms the living 
part of every plant or animal. 

Pupil, the round hole in the iris which admits light into the eye. 

Pus, the creamy matter which flows from sore wounds. It is com¬ 
posed of white blood cells that have been killed by bacteria. 


GLOSSARY 


251 

Quarantine, keeping persons who are sick with an infectious disease 
away from other persons. 

Radius, the bone on the thumb side of the arm below the elbow. 

Red blood cells, the red bodies which float in the blood. They carry 
oxygen from the lungs through the body. 

Respira'tion, breathing, and oxidation in the body. 

Sali'va, the digestive liquid of the mouth. 

Scarlet fever, an infectious disease in which the throat is sore and the 
skin red. 

Scur'vy, a disease in which the gums and bones are sore and the body 
is weak. It is caused by a lack of fresh vegetables and fruit in the 
food. 

Sen'sory nerves, nerves which carry messages to the spinal cord and 
brain. 

Se'rum, the liquid part of the blood. 

Sew'age, waste water and slops from bathrooms, kitchens, and laun¬ 
dries. 

Sew'age dispos'al, destroying the solid substances and disease germs 
in sewage. 

Sewer, a pipe for carrying away sewage. 

Shock, the dizziness, weakness, and faintness which are caused by an 
injury. 

Spinal cord, the cord of nerve matter that lies in the backbone. 

Spores, the dust that flies from mold. Each particle is a seedlike 
ball. 

Stim'ulant, a substance that will rouse the body to greater action. 

Stom'ach, the enlarged part of the digestive tube which food enters 
after it has been swallowed. 

Strong drink, any drink containing alcohol. 

Tan, a dark substance formed in the skin by exposure to bright sun¬ 
light. 

Tea, dried leaves of the tea plant. 

Ten'don, the strong, white cord which connects a muscle to a bone. 

Tobacco, a plant used for smoking and chewing, and as snuff. It 
contains a narcotic poison. 

Tonsilli'tis, a soreness of the tonsils, with fever. 

Ton'sils, two masses of flesh growing in the sides of the throat. They 
are often the cause of sickness. 

Tra'chea, the tube carrying air from the throat to the lungs; the 
windpipe. 

Tracho'ma, an infectious form of granulated eyelids. 


GLOSSARY 


Tuberculo'sis, a disease caused by the germs of tuberculosis growing 
in the body; consumption. 

Ty'phoid fever, a disease of the intestine caused by the growth of 
typhoid bacteria. 

Ul'na, the bone on the little finger side of the forearm. 

Vein, a blood tube that carries blood toward the heart. 

Venous blood, blood that contains but little oxygen. Most blood in 
the veins is venous. 

Ventila'tion, changing the air of a room for fresh, outdoor air. 

Ven'tricles, the two cavities in the lower end of the heart. 

Villi, the velvet-like projections on the lining of the intestine. 

Vin'egar, a sour liquid produced by bacteria growing in cider or wine. 

Vi'tamins, food substances which the body needs in order to make 
good use of its other foods. They are abundant in milk, green 
vegetables, and fruit. Scurvy is caused by a lack of one kind of 
vitamin. 

Vocal cords, two flat bands of flesh at the upper end of the windpipe 
by which the sound of the voice is produced. 

Waste matter, oxidized substances in the body. 

Wet dressing, a wound dressing which is kept wet with a substance 
which will kill disease germs. 

White blood cells, the white bodies which float in the blood. They 
destroy disease germs. 

Whooping cough, a children’s disease caused by the disease germs of 
whooping cough, and producing spells of hard coughing. 

Wig'gler, a young mosquito while it lives in the water. 

Yeast, microscopic plants that change sugar to alcohol and carbon 
dioxide. 

Yellow fever, an infectious disease, spread by mosquitoes. 


INDEX 


Absorbent cotton, 149 

Accidents, 154 

Adenoids, 56, 68, 177, 244 

Air, 76, 169, 182 

Alcohol, 127, 129, 194, 227, 235 

Antitoxin, 210 

Arch of foot, 49 

Arterial blood, 174 

Artery, 139, 146 

Artificial respiration, 178 

Astigmatism, 240 

Auricle, 138 

Bacteria, 16, 64, 83, 101, 106 

Bad breath, 57 

Bandages, 149 

Bathing, 23 

Bedroom, 37, 187 

Beer, 128 

Bee stings, 157 

Bile, 81 

Bleeding, 145 

Blister, 157-158 

Blood, 136, 145, 174, 189 

Board of Health, 206 

Bone, 155, 220 

Bonfire, 164 

Bowel, 80 

Brain, 229 

Bread, 95, 128 

Breathing, 171 

Bronchi, 172 

Bruise, 155-156 

Burning, 76 

Burns, 157 

Candy, 98 

Canning food, 18,101 
Capillary, 140, 172 
Carbon dioxide, 173 
Carpets, 36 


Carriers, 211 
Cells, 73 
Cereals, 95 
Cesspool, 121 
Chewing, 86 
Choking, 180 
Cigarettes, 133, 235 
Circulation, 141 
Clot, 146 

Clothes, 39, 142, 157, 190 
Coated tongue, 57 
Cocoa, 112 
Coffee, hi 

Colds, 14, 53, 177, 182, 196-203 

Communicable diseases, 14 

Connective tissue, 218 

Contacts, 208 

Contagious diseases, 14 

Cooking, 78, 101 

Cords, 219 

Corns, 49 

Corpuscles, 137 

Cotton, 41, 149 

Cough, 182, 200 

Courtesy, 168 

Cross-eye, 240 

Culture, 209 

Dampness, 37, 42 
Dandruff, 29 
Daring, 167 
Decay, 15, 64, 101 
Dentine, 64 
Diarrhoea, 212 
Digestion, 78 
Diphtheria, 14, 208, 209 
Dirt, 19 

Disease germs, 14, 26, 34, 43, 57, 67, 
104, 107, 116, 120, 121, 150, 182, 
196 

Disinfection, 207 


253 



INDEX 


254 

Distillation, 120 
Drafts, 184, 199 
Dressings, 148 
Dressing wounds, 148 
Drinking, no, 113 
Drinking cups, 113 
Drowning, rescue from, 178 
Drugs, 126, 230 
Dust, 34, 43, 182 

Ear, 241 
Earache, 244 
Eardrum, 241 
Earwax, 244 

Eating, 79, 85, 175, 234-235 

Electric shock, 180 

Enamel, 64 

Epidermis, 24 

Esophagus, 80 

Eustachian tube, 243 

Excretion, 71 

Exercise, 176, 218, 223 

Explosives, 165 

Eye, 237 

Eyeglasses, 239 

Fainting, 143 
Farsightedness, 240 
Fat, 92 
Feet, 46 

Fermentation, 127 

Fever, 196 

Filling teeth, 66 

Filter, 119 

Finger ring, 142 

Finger stall, 150 

Fire, 76, 169 

First aid, 154 

Flat feet, 50 

Flesh-forming foods, 92 

Flies, 104, 212 

Food, 78, 89, 100 

Formalin, 208 

Foul air, 182 

Fresh air, 182 


Fresh food, 101 
Fright, 154, 167 
Frozen flesh, 192 
Fruit, 95 
Fuel foods, 92 

Gas poisoning, 194 
Gastric juice, 80 
Generosity, 168 

Germs, 14, 26, 34, 43> 57, 67, 104, 
107, 116, 120, 121, 150, 182, 196 
Glands, 81 
Grain, 95 

Granulated eyelids, 241 
Growth, 89 
Gymnasium, 225 

Habit, 126,132 
Hair, 28 

Handkerchief, 53, 201 
Hands, and disease germs, 27, 105, 
212 

Hangnail, 30 
Hearing, testing the, 243 
Heart, 137 

Heat of the body, 189 
Heating houses, 193 
Heights and weights, 89 
Humerus, 221 
Hygiene, 12 

Ice, hi, 120 

Infectious diseases, 14, 196 
Influenza, 203 
Ingrowing nail, 48 
Insects, 212 
Intestine, 71, 80 
Iris, 237 
Ironing, 44 
Isolation, 207 

Jokes, practical, 166 

Kidneys, 71, no 
Knives, 166 



INDEX 


255 


Lemonade, 112 
Ligaments, 221, 222 
Lime, 220 
Liver, 81 
Lockjaw, 156 
Lunches, 97 
Lungs, 172 

Maggots, 213 
Malaria, 215 
Manners, 21, 87 
Mealtimes, 85 
Measles, 205 
Meat, 95 
Memory, 231 
Milk, 97, 105, 112 
Mind, 229 
Minerals, 75, 92 
Molars, 61, 63 
Mold, 16, 36, 100 
Morphine, 130, 230 
Mosquitoes, 215 
Motor nerves, 231 
Mouth, 53, 65, 79, 177 
Mucus, 53, 55 
Muscles, 218, 232 

Nails, 29, 48 
Narcotic, 125, 235 
Nearsightedness, 239 
Nerves, 229 
Nervous system, 229 
Nicotine, 132 
Night air, 186 
Nose, 53 
Nosebleed, 148 
Nourishment, 91 

Obedience, 168 
Oil glands, 25 
Oil stove, 194 
Opium, 130 
Organs, 70, 71 
Overshoes, 51 

Oxidation, 76, 109, 169, 175 
Oxygen, 76, 137, 169 


Pain, 155, 230 
Pancrea.i, 81 
Paper clothing, 40 
Paramecium, 74 
Pasteurize, 107 
Perspiration, 25, 43, no 
Physiology, 12 
Play, 225, 232 
Pneumonia, 203 
Poison ivy, 158 
Posture, 178, 223 
Potatoes, 95 
Practical jokes, 166 
Protein, 75, 92 
Pulse, 139 
Pupil, 237 

Purifying water, 119 
Pus, 151 

Quarantine, 207 

Radius, 221 
Red blood cells, 136 
Respiration, 169 
Response to signals, 228 
Rowing, 225 

Safety first, 160 
Safety signs, 162 
Saliva, 79 
Scarlet fever, 211 
Screens, 104, 213 
Sensory nerves, 229 
Serum, 136 
Sewage, 116, 120 
Sewage disposal, 121 
Sewers, 120 
Shock, 154 
Shoes, 46 

Shoulders, stooped, 177 
Sick, care of the, 32, 58 
Sight, testing the, 239 
Silk, 39 

Sixth-year molar, 63 
Skin, 23, no, 189 
Sleep, 187, 233 



256 INDEX 


Sleeping porch, 187 
Slipper animalcule, 74 
Slops, 116 
Sneeze, 182, 200 
Soap, 30, 44 
Soda water, 112 
Soft drinks, 127 
Sore throat, 208 
Spectacles, 240 
Speech, 245 
Spinal cord, 229 
Spitting, 54, 133, 200 
Splint, 155, 220 
Splinters, 156 
Spores, 16 
Sprain, 222 
Stammering, 246 
Starch, 92 
Stimulant, 125 
Stomach, 71, 80 
Street crossing, 162-163 
Strength, 171, 175 
Strong drink, 127 
Sugar, 92, 98 
Sunburn, 159 
Sunlight, 37 
Sunstroke, 191 
Swallowing, 79 
Sweat, 25 
Sweeping, 35 
Sweets, 98 
Swimming, 32, 224 

Tan, 159 
Taste, 84, 94, 100 
Tea, hi 
Team play, 228 
Tears, 238 
Teeth, 61 

Temperature, 189, 196 
Tendon, 219 
Thinking, 231 
Throat examination, 209 
Tired brains and muscles, 232 
Tobacco, 131, 143, 235 


Tongue-tie, 245 
Tonsillitis, 15, 56, 208 
Tonsils, 55, 56 
Toothache, 64 
Toothbrush, 64 
Towel, 28 
Trachea, 172 
Trachoma, 241 
Tripping, 167 
Tuberculosis, 15 
Typhoid fever, 15, 117, 213 

Ulna, 221 
Underclothes, 43 

Vegetables, 95 
Vein, 140 
Venous blood, 174 
Ventilation, 184, 193 
Ventricle, 138 
Villi, 82 
Vinegar, 129 
Virginia creeper, 158 
Vitamins, 93, 97 
Vocal cords, 245 
Voice, 245 

Wakefulness, 234 
Washing clothes, 43 
Washing dishes, 103 
Waste matter, 25, 54, 109 
Water, 25, 75, 109, 116 
Weight of body, 89 
Wells, 118 

White blood cells, 137, 151 

Whooping cough, 212 

Wigglers, 215 

Windpipe, 172 

Wine, 127 

Wool, 40 

Wounds, 145 

Yeast, 128 
Yellow fever, 215 



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